Q: Hi there, I am a university student curious about JIBBITZ and what their patent includes.

Is it the fastener? or the brand name? Basically can someone legally imitate their croc charm idea?

2 Lawyer Answers
Kevin E. Flynn
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A: One place to start is the USPTO assignment database. While not every company registers their assignments there, it is a best practice and many larger companies are good about doing so.

https://assignment.uspto.gov/patent/index.html#/patent/search/result?id=JIBBITZ&type=patAssigneeName

I see four different issued US patents. You can look at them in Google Patents or another tool to get a general idea of what they cover. Keep in mind that the scope of coverage is solely what is in the claims. Often the description and figures are broader than the claims.

I hope that this helps.

James L. Arrasmith
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A: Jibbitz is a brand of shoe charms designed to fit in the holes of Crocs shoes. While the exact details of their patent are not publicly available, it is likely that the patent covers the specific design and functionality of their shoe charm product. This could include the materials used, the shape and size of the charms, and any unique features that distinguish Jibbitz from other shoe charm products.

It is important to note that if Jibbitz has a valid patent for their product, then it is illegal for others to make, use, sell, or import a product that infringes on their patent. This means that if someone were to create a product that is too similar to Jibbitz and falls within the scope of their patent, they could be sued for patent infringement. However, if someone were to create a product that is different enough from Jibbitz and does not infringe on their patent, they could potentially sell that product without legal repercussions.

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