If i make a company that has a similar but different spelling in the name than one that is currently copyrighted or trademarked, could i possibly be sued? I have no affiliation with said company nor do i sell or copy anything of said company, just two similar names. There is a trademark for the... Read more »
Yes you can be sued.
It will depend on the similarity or difference of the products and whether somebody can be confused as the origin of the products or services.
Consult with an attorney
It's really just a modification I've made to stuffed animals, that started out as a game mechanic. I just really want to make sure that if someone manufactures it that they won't stop me from using the design. Making some money off of it wouldn't hurt either but it is secondary.
You may want to consider protecting your toy with a patent, assuming your modifications to existing toys are novel and non-obvious. You will need a patent attorney to help you assessing the patentability of your toy and preparing and filing the patent application.
Please give me a call if... Read more »
I'm a designer and am designing a logo for a company called Southside Vols Nutrition, and wanted to make sure that I'm not infringing on an existing logo work mark when I start into this thing. Any insight would be helpful! Thanks.
Hi there! Thanks for reaching out. You may be able to trademark that logo if it is different enough from all of the trademarks owned by UTK. It also depends on if "vols" is considered a "famous mark."
I would definitely suggest speaking with a trademark attorney to do... Read more »
If your name is Sincere you will likely not be able to have it registered in either a state or with the Federal Trademark Office. Surnames are not protectable by Trademark. See a trademark attorney.
Photoshopped or free and drawn.
Because all of those characters are either protected under copyright on trademark, your proposed activity would result in infringement. To help you better understand the implications of such intellectual property rights, both the Copyright Office and USPTO have excellent informative websites. I... Read more »
I want to be Legally Registered with my Business Name, LLC but my domain name and product Trademark to be a different name. Is this possible? Also, what legal issues do I need to worry about and any other added information would be amazing. Im selling clothes and the name is a little edgy and dont... Read more »
I recommend you consult with a business attorney to discuss in greater detail. In general, you could register an LLC as a certain name and use another moniker to denote the business. This is fairly common practice, many businesses operate and trademark certain names while the LLC could be something... Read more »
I make items from wood and would like to put them on a website to sell. The thing I am unsure about is, some of the items are props designed after video games, tv shows, and/or movies. What would be required far as this goes?
Depending on what you mean by disclaimer, I do not believe you need notarization.
But you should consult with an attorney on that.
Propos may be protected by copyright, and their branding by trademarks. SO I would be careful on making things that are an exact replica and be careful... Read more »
If they find out where you are, most likely they will, yes.
I have had correspondence with lawfirm who agreed to payments on a debt. Today there was a card from a lady who tried to serve me for a lawsuit. I haven’t been able to find anything about the lawsuit yet and am unsure of how i would find this. Any advice? The payments have not defaulted.
If a lawsuit has been filed, it is a public record at the courthouse. However, it will only be filed in one county ( not all of them) and many times, the plaintiff has a choice as to which county they may elect to file in. For example, if the debt is the result of an auto accident, the plaintiff... Read more »
What is a side by side?
If it is a very common, widely used term, it is probably not protectable, so anybody could use it.
It will also depend if you are filing for protection or just going to make the product without any registration.
Congratulations on your new venture! I hope that it is a great success.
You can start to protect your intellectual property right away. The most important for you will likely be trademarking your product names, logos, etc. You can file for federal registrations before you ship your first... Read more »
One of the graphic printers says that as long as I don't market and sale them as license sports boards, I'm fine. They say they have copyright license. I only display them on Craigslist and Facebook.
Selling online is still selling, and selling them with the decal on gives the appearance of being a licensed product when it is not. What you describe is using someone else's brand for commercial purposes without their permission. The printer may have the license to sell the decals, but that... Read more »
will this stand up in court if proof of ownership is ever challenged.
state: TN
You have described a "poor man's copyright." It's worth about as much as the piece of paper it's written on, but not after you add postage. Under U.S. law, a copyright comes into existence the moment the original idea is "fixed in a tangible medium" - when you... Read more »
I am starting a craft business and I have been looking into the law relevant to that. I recently read a blog post about how a person had to take down their clip art listing from Etsy because it infringed on a patent. The clip art design was a green tractor with yellow wheels. She said that there... Read more »
There are a lot of people that are pretty unclear on the difference between patents, trademarks, and copyrights.
I cannot see a way for John Deere to own generic images of tractors under a utility patent. They could chase protection for a particular way their actual tractor (or a toy... Read more »
Filing a trademark application is easy and inexpensive. Expect a $275 fee to the government and a small amount of professional time to prepare the application. The more expensive and complicated part of the trademark application process is responding to the government attorney's legal... Read more »
I filed with Legal Zoom before but I can't find the trademark when I search for it. It was over a year ago, so I'm thinking of just finding a Lawyer.
I need help finding an affordable, legal and professional trademark registration if I can't find the original trademark. Any assistance? Thanks.
Did you receive an initial response from the USPTO (usually within about three months of your original application)? It can take a year to a year and a half before your trademark registration is completed.
I would encourage you to find out the status of the application you've... Read more »
I am a Seattle-based freelance designer that created a logo in 2014 for a client in TN. That client is AnchorYourSoul.com, and the logo was discovered to being used by someone else in 2015. We both told her to cease and desist using it in her social media channels and website. She complied, but... Read more »
Have you filed for copyright protection for the image? If so, it's likely that an attorney would assist you for a portion of any money recovered from the person infringing. Filing for copyright protection for a single work of visual art is $35, it's $55 to file for multiple works.... Read more »
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