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answered on Feb 21, 2024

The First Amendment protects freedom of speech and expression, but its application in specific contexts can vary. When it comes to photos saved to a school account on a school device, the situation may not fall squarely within the realm of First Amendment protection. Schools often have their own... View More

Note: I'm a business attorney, not a trademark attorney. Here is generally what I tell people starting up a new business or entering into a new line of business that involves trademarks.

When you ask if you need to "trademark" your brand name and logo, what you are really... View More

That emoticon, like most emoticons, is likely licensed to the users of apps that allow users to post that emoticon. It is probably not available for commercial use, but the license might extend to other uses, contact an intellectual property lawyer in Kansas City, MO to discuss the ins-and-outs.

be careful

if you are reproducing the whole article you should consider seriously getting permission

your risk is very high

Hopefully your project won't end in litigation. However, because there is a lot at stake, it would be good to work with local business counsel familiar with intellectual property issues before you proceed any further. It is important to remember that if you do not have a writing in place... View More

Many patented processes use patented components in the process. Sometimes the company seeking the patent on the process owns the patents on the tools or components used in the process, sometimes they do not. It does not matter.

That said, your own idea will need to meet the test of being... View More

Why not charge for something besides the movie?

You're probably running into trademark issues, and maybe copyright as well. The use of the slogan "Just Dewey It" without any use of a swoosh-like logo is a close call. Arguably it might fall within parody or other fair use exceptions to trademark or copyright infringement. The Nike... View More

You are OK. The whole point of intellectual property law is to assure creators who make, invents or creates something, are protected from nefarious individuals who would steal or copy it. If you've been using a phrase in your business for several years, nobody can register it and prevent you... View More

This is a tricky situation. Copyright infringement is strict liability, so your intent not to infringe doesn't save you from a possible claim of infringement. Whether the image is actually subject to a copyright claim is unclear, since it was created before 1978. If it was published or... View More

You are talking about the difference between a common law trademark and a registered trademark. Different things with different rights and requirements. Here is a helpful resource: https://www.upcounsel.com/common-law-trademark

If you want to conduct business under anything other than the legal name of the business, you will need to register an assumed name, which is different than a trademark. You are not required to trademark any aspect of the business name or branding. Although it can be very beneficial to do so.... View More

Short answer: Maybe.

Long answer: It depends on whether the two goods are so related as to potentially cause consumer confusion (which is a core issue in trademark law). The other thing that must be evaluated is whether the crossover from clothing to "a household good" is within... View More

To answer your question: Yes, US students may legally purchase international editions of textbooks. It's really the -seller- of international textbooks that must invoke the first-sale doctrine to protect their activities, but the Supreme Court recently decided that they may.... View More