A Board Certified Patent Attorney
Posts Tagged ‘trademark law’
Trademark on Your Logo Already? Maybe not…
The owner of a Federally registered trademark is presumed to be the exclusive owner of the mark for the goods and services. So, if a word or phrase is already trademarked, does that mean you can’t use it? Most people think yes. But there is a little loophole in trademark law that allows you to use a trademarked term even if it’s protected and widely used. Let’s take a closer look with a few examples… Trademark Example #1: Delta I’m sure you’ve heard of the airline giant Delta Airlines. But you probably aren’t aware of Kitchen faucet manufacture Delta Faucet. Delta faucet holds a number of trademarks for its products including its In2ition two in one shower, the Linden waterfall pull-out kitchen faucet, and the Dryden bath faucet. But it also owns a registered mark on the Delta name, just like
How a Trademark Mistake Cost a Business Owner Five-Figures
Do you know how much money your business would lose if you were forced to shut your doors for a day? A week? A month? Well, if you are making the one trademark mistake I’m about to share with you, then you could be putting all of that income at risk. As a Florida trademark attorney practicing for over 15 years in this specialized area of law, I am no longer surprised by the consequences of simple mistakes made by business owners but they are always disheartening. Here’s the story… "Joe" – the owner of an online kayaking equipment retailer – hired an ad agency to create buzz for his company’s online debut. They created an expensive marketing campaign complete with catchy slogans…news releases… ads…and media kits. All the bells and whistles. But when
How Trademark Infringement Can Shut Down Your Business
A trademark battle is being waged in federal court right now involving the National Football League (NFL), NFL Properties (NFLP), the New Orleans Saints, Liquid Ventures Inc., Logo Express Marketing Inc., Monogram Express, Storyville Apparel, and Fleurty Girl. And the center of this suit is a Who Dat? Inc. They claim that all of these companies infringed against their trademark of the Who Dat? phrase. Meanwhile the Saints claim it has owned the "Who Dat" trademark since 1988. Full story here – Who Dat trademark case While there are many lessons you could learn about protecting your intellectual property from this case, there is one very important one that may help you from being put out of business (or aid you in shutting down a company that is unlawfully stealing your ideas). Trademarks Protect Your Company Na