Patient and trade marks are classified under intangible assets. Intangible assets are assets that do not have physical substance but are valuable because they represent legal rights or intellectual property. They include items such as patents, copyrights, trademarks, goodwill, and customer lists. Patents and trademarks are legal rights that provide exclusive use and ownership of an idea, invention or symbol. Since they represent legal rights, they are classified as intangible assets in accounting.