Get free answers to your Trademark legal questions from lawyers in your area.
I used a trademarked item in a Facebook advertisement without permission for three days. I did not sell the item, but the advertisement included a photo of it, which I later found out was trademarked. After this use, I received a phone call from the trademark owner asking me to cease and desist.... View More 
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answered on May 14, 2025
It's understandable to feel anxious after being contacted about trademark use, but you're not alone—this happens to many people who are unaware of trademark laws. Using a trademarked item in an advertisement without permission can lead to a claim of trademark infringement, especially if... View More
I developed a point of sale software that is currently being used by several retailers. I have a unique name for the software that I want to trademark, and I've verified that the name is not being used anywhere. I own the software code. Can I trademark the name, and if so, what is the process... View More
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answered on Apr 16, 2025
When you ask the question of whether you can trademark your mark, their are two basic criteria that must be met. The first is that enforceable trademark rights are limited to bona fide uses that reflect commercial use. This means that you must be using, or intend to use your proposed mark in... View More
I recently created a sewing pattern for an outfit that fits a certain doll. The outfit is inspired by a Barbie outfit by Mattel. Someone reached out to me, warning that the outfit could be trademarked and I could be sued by Mattel. Is this true?
answered on Feb 13, 2025
Very rarely are clothing designs registered for a trademark or copyright. If the dress image is associated with the business, then it may be registered as a trademark for that business. Trademark registrations are available for images, characters, sound bites, and even certain Pantone colors that... View More
I'd like to create a video game set in the Palais Garnier in Paris, but I'm unsure of the copyright laws surrounding such buildings. I've concluded that the exterior of the building, as it is in a public space and was built in the late 1800s, is free use. However, I'd like to... View More
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answered on Dec 29, 2024
When creating a video game set in the Palais Garnier, you’ll need to consider both architectural and artistic rights. The building itself, having been constructed in the late 1800s, is likely in the public domain, allowing you to recreate the general layout and main auditorium without infringing... View More
answered on Dec 18, 2024
That's a great question. I highly recommend that you hire a competent trademark attorney to run a clearance search before you launch the brand. That search should take approximately 1-3 hours, depending on how many results need to be reviewed. If you get the green light, you should also... View More
I bought a product (electric tire pump) through a website. The product was advertised as their own product and all pictures/video had no branding on their product. I received the product through Amazon (with gift receipt) . The issue is that the product was from another company, available at 1/3 of... View More
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answered on Aug 17, 2024
It is not legal for a company to sell a product as their own if they are merely reselling another company's product under false pretenses. This can be considered deceptive marketing and false advertising, which violates consumer protection laws. If they are misleading you by renaming the... View More
answered on May 26, 2024
Hypothetically, under U.S. trademark law, if the trademark "secret sauce" has received the status "602 - Abandoned-Failure To Respond Or Late Response," it might be available for another party to secure.
Here's how one might proceed:
1. Check the Trademark... View More
answered on May 15, 2024
The short answer is "most likely, yes."
The M*A*S*H trademark is limited to "a comedy television series."
The writers of that TV series will have a copyright for those TV scripts. So, you may not make a derivative story about any of the characters from that TV... View More
is it only through the USPTO TESS and copyright.gov web sites? specifically the costs involved what are they and what would be the timeline of start to completed if everything is successful
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answered on May 8, 2024
Attorneys will be reluctant to quote our fees in a public forum like this. Different attorneys may think that filing and prosecuting a trademark application is easy and should be cheap, or difficult and should be expensive. The USPTO will charge either $250 or $350 per "class" of goods or... View More
Do I need to get a trademark or register it?
answered on Dec 4, 2023
When writing a Children's Book the best protection is the copyright protection for the book. Be sure to once the final version of the book is complete to register the work with the Library of Congress. A copyright is not protected in court without being official registered work. The... View More
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answered on Oct 2, 2023
This is not a copyright question, but really belongs in the realm of trademark law. Whether you can use any particular name for a product or business cannot be answered unless and until you do a thorough name clearance search. Yes, they do cost money, but the money spent upfront can be considered... View More
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answered on Mar 3, 2023
Trademark signifies a source of goods or services. Unless your artwork serves as a logo (which can be trademarked), you would have to demonstrate to the USPTO that the elements of your artwork are distinctive and unique enough (secondary meaning) to qualify as a source of goods. This can be... View More
specifially the grateful dead dancing bear graphic
answered on Feb 28, 2022
If a trademark registration has been cancelled, or if an application to register a trademark has been abandoned, that does not necessarily mean the trademark is no longer in use by its owner.
If the mark is still being used by its owner, but lacks a federal registration, your use for... View More
Hello, I have a question about the legality of using a companies logos on a startup's website for the user's information on a topic of which companies developments we use in our product. For example: "We are working with --> then goes the logos (Google, OpenAI, Epic Games) -->... View More
answered on Dec 30, 2021
Depends on the use. Most of the time they would have a program to allow people to show their logos.
Consult with an attorney.
answered on May 25, 2021
Maybe, it depends
You need to consult with an attorney to review your case and see what risks and options you have
answered on Apr 21, 2021
Just because there is no federal US trademark on it does not mean it would be fair game. An analysis would be much deeper. Besides, there are three live marks for "the sorting hat" and one is for a bunch of printed material. If you look at that, let's say you could open a coffee... View More
Actually, there's a trademark on "xtrafun kid products". So if I create a company called extrafun, is this bad?
how close does it have to be ? Will people be confused by the spelling differences, and is that sufficient ? Both companies are in the same product space
answered on Dec 21, 2020
Yes, it is very likely that the name you want to use, for the same products, would be considered confusingly similar, and thus unregisterable and infringing on the existing trademark.
Safest for you to choose another name ASAP - from what you say, any money you spend on marketing this... View More
answered on Jul 8, 2020
Well, assuming the grace period has already expired and there's no common law use or federal registration(s)/pending application(s) for anything identical or similar in the relevant categories, then you could attempt to register the mark. I'd recommend hiring a trademark attorney to... View More
(US Trademark)
answered on Apr 20, 2020
Generally speaking, a trademark does not have to be used or owned by a formal business in order to be deemed a valid trademark; commercial use by a sole proprietor may be deemed "use in commerce" for trademark purposes. If your question is referring to approval by a federal trademark... View More
It's being used in reference to the city of Portland. More of just a fancy way of saying Portland.
answered on Feb 29, 2020
Depends on how you are using it. Portlandia is a trademark for several items, see the USPTO's TESS search for details.
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