Your short question includes many key questions of patent law.

1) You do not infringe a patent. You infringe one or more specific independent claims (ones that start with no reference to another claim) and possibly some dependent claims (a claim that adds additional limitations to at least... View More

You should discuss with a trademark attorney. A trademark attorney will, as the first step of the service provided, conduct a thorough search of the Federal trademark register, state registers, domain names in use, and other common law usages of the term to find out if anyone is already using that... View More

It depends on just how much of your skit would be considered parody. Parody may be considered fair use under U.S. law (17 USC 107), but whether a particular performance/video/etc. actually provides a fair use defense depends on the specific facts, and then how those facts compare to the factors... View More

I see that you filed a patent application and the PTO processed the application with an Office Action rejecting the claim as too vague to even examine. After a period of six months, the application was deemed abandoned. There is an indication in the file that the final notice was returned as... View More

Are you selling the product? Mere possession of an item with a trademark is not necessarily infringement. Selling (i.e. generating revenues and profits) is entirely different. Unfortunately, there is not enough information in your question to provide any further insight. Good luck!

This is a common question, and I have written a lengthy blog post that attempts to answer it fully: https://klemalaw.com/blog/2017/09/09/registering-abandoned-trademarks/

You can try to search for similar names yourself. The state trademark database (for Florida, that's http://search.sunbiz.org/Inquiry/CorporationSearch/ByTrademark), or the federal principal register (USPTO TESS). But without someone trained in legal analysis of trademark issues, you're... View More

Yes, possibly. It depends on a few additional facts, including the context of the original tweet, the context of your re-tweet, the economic benefit you're deriving from the use (if any), and others. It's a novel question that might be a good hypothetical for a law school exam. If you... View More

Sure. Attorneys licensed to practice law in Florida (or in any other state for that matter) are not limited to any particular area of law, such as criminal, civil, etc. Many however emphasize such a particular area of the law, but they are not prohibited from practicing in other areas.

If you are inquiring simply for general knowledge, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office outlines the differences in a basic manner here:

https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks-getting-started/trademark-basics/trademark-patent-or-copyright

Tim Akpinar

If the patent has expired, you can't "protect" the patent; it is no longer valid and enforceable.

See to it that the property is sold and you have received the proceeds before you release the child support obligation. He may be saying that the property is worth more than it is, or there may be a problem with the title.

Potentially, depending on several factors.

You need to negotiate a license from the trademark owner. Start by contacting the owner’s registered agent listed in the USPTO’s website. I would advise seeking the help of an attorney so you can ensure the terms of the license confirm to everything you need. If you need assistance feel free to... View More

A pending application has not been registered.

You cannot update an issued patent to expand coverage. You can file a new patent application. The Bell patent on the telephone was filed more than 100 years ago and there are still lots of new patent applications on the telephone.

Keep in mind, that your new application will need to be... View More

The answer to your question depends on the employment contract you signed with the marketing agency and whether you can share the portfolio. I would look to see what their requirement states first.

As far as copyright law, technically if you were hired as a work for hire with all... View More

In general, yes. When they get paid they should release the lien. The idea is that you won't be able to sell the property without paying them.

You need to consult with an experienced trademark attorney prior to taking what seems on its face to be a very risky tack. If your proposed product is sufficiently related to that sold under the registered mark, then you may have a serious infringement issue.

One would need more facts to provide you with a useful answer. Are there business assets that you would use? Did the other shareholder personally guarantee the debt? Did you? Where there other assets owned by your former business associate? As you may suspect, perhaps the best and most prudent... View More