No you do not need to be a corporation or LLC. You just need to be the owner of the trademark to file an application for registration. The owner controls the use of the mark, and controls the nature and quality of the goods to which it is affixed, or the services for which it is used. The owner may... View More

This would be risky if you did not have the permission of the car designer and/or driver. The care could be covered by a design patent. Also, there is a somewhat famous case in which someone who did exactly what you propose was found to have violated the "right of publicity" of the... View More

You may be able to do both, if the logo contains sufficient creative content. Trademark protection would protect against someone else using a confusingly similar logo in thier business, even if they did not "copy" your logo (e.g., they coincidentally designed a logo that is similar).... View More

Good question. If the logo is copyrightable, and making the logo was not within the scope of the employee's job, then the employee may own the copyright to the logo, meaning it could not be reproduced without infringing his or her copyright. However, the circumstances are highly fact specific,... View More

No, the "right of publicity" varies considerably from State to state, so check with an attorney in your state. Indiana is viewed as having the most favorabel "right of publicty" statute anywhere in the country, as discussed here:... View More

First consider whether the lyrics may be in the public domain, for example, if the song is over 75 years old. Assuming the song is protected by copyright, unfortunately, there is no "objective test" for how many words you can quote. In general, reproducing a copyrighted work for purposes... View More

Yes, you can, by going to uspto.gov. However, unless you are familiar with the regulations of the Trademark Office, your application may be rejected.

Paul Overhauser

www.iniplaw.org

www.overhauser.com

317- 891-1500

A band name is not copyrightable, but it can be protected by trademark law. You may be ablet to obtain a State or Federal trademark registration on the name, and, a logo for the band's name, if you have one.

Paul Overhauser

www.iniplaw.org

www.overhauser.com

317- 891-1500

Try going here: http://dockets.justia.com/ Select Virgina for the jurisdiction and patent (under intellectual property) for the case "Type." This will show you patent cases that have been filed. Then get a PACER account, and look at the docket reports for various cases.

Paul... View More

Yes, you would have potential liability if your book was published under circumstances that led consumers to believe that it came from a celebrity, rather than yourself. This would include misstating the name of a celebrity. If you changed your name to be the same as the celebrity, there could... View More

The best way to protect a recipe would, in theory, be through a patent. However, this could be difficult for two reasons. First, "non-obviousness" is required for a patent, and the Patent Office may consider your ingredients to be "obvious," and hence unpatentable. Second, in... View More

I don't think so. I am not aware of any specific eagle logo of the FOE that they have registered and that the USPS has copied.

Paul Overhauser

www.iniplaw.org

www.overhauser.com

317- 891-1500

Yes it is. Clothing designs can be protected by copyrights, patents (usually design patents) and by trademarks. There is also new federal legislation under consideration to provide a stronger form of protection for clothing designs, but at the moment, it does not look like it will be passed soon.... View More

Third World has filed 5 cases. The first two are concluded, and the last three are still pending: 1 Third World Media, LLC (cd) cacdce 2:2009-cv-01603 820 03/06/2009 10/28/2009 2 Third World Media, LLC (pla) cacdce 2:2009-cv-01603 820 03/06/2009 10/28/2009 3 Third World Media, LLC (pla) cacdce... View More

If there is actual or likely confusion caused by the similar name, you probably have rights that can be enforced. Both state law and the Federal Lanham Act allow claims for infringement of trademarks, even if there is no state or federal trademark registration. You should consult a trademark... View More

Yes, a Federal Attonrey can prosecute you for a counterfeit trademark offense per 9 USC 1715: In order to show that a trademark used by the defendant was a "counterfeit mark" the government must prove the following: The mark is spurious. 18 U.S.C. § 2320(d)(1)(a). A mark is... View More

It depends on what you mean by your "own" photographs. If these are photos you took, yes, you probably own copyrights to them. If someone else took picture of you, they would own the rights to them. However, you may also have a "right of publicity," which would give you the... View More

Criminal penalties are applicable in severe trademark infringement cases involving counterfeiting of products. Counterfeiting is considered to be an extreme form of trademark infrigmement since the infringer knowingly takes advantage of the trademark, brandname, and goodwill of a firm to... View More

Assuming you created the website yourself, yes, you can copyright a website by using Copyright application form TX or by filing on-line. However, most business websites are created by website development companies. Unless they assign the copyrights in the website to you, they own it not you. Also,... View More

Only a "claimant" to a copyright can register it. You are not the "author" so you cannot claim ownership through authorship. However, assuming your grandmother is dead, and your are her sole heir, you may be the copyright owner under the laws where your grandmother died. If this... View More