A Board Certified Patent Attorney
Duplicating Successful Business Methods Through Franchising
Before looking into franchising a new idea for a successful business, it is important for an entrepreneur to understand the conceptual dynamics of franchises and the franchise arrangement. Franchising can be an excellent way to expand a business. By cloning proven business and marketing techniques and finding others willing to invest their time and money to help grow a business concept, a propriet... Read More
Protecting Creative Expression Through Copyright Law
When most people think of creative expression, they naturally envision the work of individual authors, artists, poets, singers, and musicians. In fact, these works only comprise the classic examples of copyrightable subject matter. Less obvious, however, is the multitude of everyday business components that lend themselves to copyright protection. In today’s competitive business envir... Read More
Business Method Patent on Selling Cereal Plagues Florida Business
Florida businessman Rocco Monteleone was in for a surprise patent dispute after he opened up a cereal cafe in Gainesville, Florida. He received a letter from an attorney representing Cereality, Inc., a company claiming exclusive rights to their patent pending system and method of selling cereal, according to an article in In These Times. Click here to read the complete article. ... Read More
Florida Patent Holder Wins $48 Million Judgment
A small Pinellas park business, AlphaMed Pharmaceutical Corp., has been awarded $48-million in compensatory damages arising from the alleged fraudulent sale of its patent on a new drug according to an article in the St. Petersburg Times. Arriva Pharmaceuticals Corp. and a private investigation firm were found guilty of unfair competition, sealing trade secrets, and interfering with AlphaMed... Read More
Florida Trademark Applicant Seeks Rights to “KATRINA BLOWS BUSH SUCKS”
Roughly two weeks after Hurricane Katrina battered South Florida, a trademark applicant in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, is seeking rights to the mark KATRINA BLOWS BUSH SUCKS. Details of the application can be found on the Patent & Trademark Office Website. Simply click on status and enter serial number 78706886 and request status. The Office Action has already been issued rejec... Read More
Hershey Sues Publisher for Trademark Infringement
A federal lawsuit filed on December 16, 2005, alleges that publisher Simon & Schuster’s front cover of “Hershey: Milton S. Hershey’s Extraordinary Life of Wealth, Empire and Utopian Dreams” is in violation of the candymaker’s ( Hershey Chocolate Corporation )trademark rights because the cover looks like a Hershey bar. So much for not judging a book ... Read More
Overview of the American Inventor’s Protection Act of 1999
If life were like the popular board game Monopoly��, obtaining meaningful patent protection would be as simple as buying up Boardwalk and Park Place. In the board game, you simply purchase the property you want, place houses or hotels on them over time, and eagerly collect a continual revenue stream from the successful venture. The rules governing monopolies on ideas, however, are signi... Read More
Nine Costly Misconceptions About Patents
If life were like the popular board game Monopoly ��, obtaining meaningful patent protection would be as simple as buying up Boardwalk and Park Place. In the board game, you simply purchase the property you want, place houses or hotels on them over time, and eagerly collect a continual revenue stream from the successful venture. The rules governing monopolies on ideas, however, are sign... Read More
Preventing Insider Competition in a Down Economy
With reduced barriers to entry, key employees are more capable than ever before of forming split-off start-up companies and competing with their former employers. Furthermore, job mobility is at an all-time high with senior management and even principals moving regularly as a way to take advantage of new opportunities and to advance their careers. In this contextual setting, it certainly is... Read More
Turning to Patent Law to Protect Your Business Methods
When most people think of patents, they automatically think of a new mechanical product, a chemical composition, or a manufacturing process. Since a landmark Supreme Court decision in 1998, however, an increasing number of patents are being issued for innovations in business methods. Patents are not just reserved for classical scientific innovations anymore, but are regularly used by banks, stockb... Read More
Assessing Your Company’s Intellectual Property Assets
When asked to identify company assets, many business people will rattle off a listing of real estate, equipment, supplies, inventory, and other tangible property. In today’s economic climate, however, it is more important than ever to be vigilant in securing and protecting valuable intellectual property assets such as patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. Like oth... Read More
Protecting Software Through Patent Law
Patents, not copyrights, are now the only way to give adequate protection to the most important aspects of software. The is true because the “idea” behind a particular algorithm is much better protected as a patentable method than as a narrowly limited expression in copyright law. Most software designers are interested in preventing others from stealing the core methodology used... Read More
Trademark Selection
It is important to select a trademark that can be registered as a Federal Trademark prior to introducing a new product or service into the marketplace. Businesses should be very careful in selecting a mark so that they retain the ability to obtain registration and can prevent others from using the mark. Trademarks are classified into following four categories: Generic Descriptive Suggestive... Read More
Protecting Business Names & Product Brand Identities Through Trademark Law
Inexperienced entrepreneurs often overlook the importance of properly securing rights to their business and product names during the frenzied pace of the start-up phase of their businesses. Unfortunately, mistakes at these early stages of choosing and protecting names can end up being very costly. Trademark law provides the exclusive right to use a mark that serves to distinguish the goods ... Read More