Get free answers to your Intellectual Property legal questions from lawyers in your area.
answered on Mar 22, 2011
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
answered on Mar 21, 2011
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
answered on Mar 17, 2011
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
answered on Mar 17, 2011
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
I would think it is, but then again no matter what your pen name is someone with the same name exists, and pen names are very commonly used. My follow up question would be a misspelling of the celebrities name; for example his name is John Doe, could the famous actor John take civil actions against... View More
answered on Mar 17, 2011
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
answered on Mar 17, 2011
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
answered on Mar 17, 2011
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
answered on Mar 16, 2011
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
But now a similar business is using the same name for a store across the border in Indiana. Do I have any rights?
answered on Mar 16, 2011
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
answered on Mar 16, 2011
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
answered on Mar 16, 2011
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
I am not sure about this but have heard all sorts of rumors. I am looking into starting a party business going to others homes and having a party where I sell purses, etc. Some of the purses about 20 will be replicas (knock offs) and would have the trademark of name brand the other 40 purses of my... View More
answered on Mar 16, 2011
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
answered on Mar 15, 2011
It depends on several factors, such as whether you filed for a patent, whether it may still be possible for you to do so, and whether the company you called agreed to keep the invention confidential. There may also be other relevant facts. You should contact an intellectual property attorney to... View More
answered on Mar 15, 2011
There is no requirement that you hire a trademark lawyer. However, some reasons you might want to hire one are: (a) to ensure that a trademark is what you really need (many people confuse a trademark with a copyright or patent); (b) to conduct a search to ensure your mark is not infringing someone... View More
answered on Jan 21, 2011
For the patent application, unless the application is abandoned within 18 months, or unless it was filed with a Non-publication Request (which would limit your ability to file for foreign patents) your application will be published. Similarly, unless you with withdraw your copyright application,... View More
answered on Jan 15, 2011
Two good groups are the Venture Club of Indiana, www.ventureclub.org; and the Hackers and Founders, www.meetup.com/Hackers-and-Founders-Indianapolis/
Paul Overhauser
317-891-1500
www.overhauser.com
answered on Jan 16, 2011
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... View More
answered on Jan 16, 2011
Sorry, trademark offices (Federal or State) do not offer refunds, as registration is not guaranteed. The office will will conduct a search and will refuse to register your mark if there is another registered mark or pending mark similar to yours for related goods/services.
Paul... View More
answered on Jan 16, 2011
You are not required to hire an attorney, but if you decide to prepare and submit your own application, you must comply with all requirements of the trademark statutes and rules and may be required to respond to legal issues raised by the the Trademark Office. Because the application process can be... View More
answered on Jan 11, 2011
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
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