Articles
Registering a trademark
If you are a business owner, registering a trademark for your brand can be a crucial step in protecting your intellectual property. A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol, design, or even a color or smell, that distinguishes the source of your goods or services from those of others. It represents the quality and reputation of your business and can help to prevent others from using a similar mark in a way that might confuse consumers. It also prevents other businesses from freeriding on the goodwill of your brand.
A summary of the four types of intellectual property
Intellectual property refers to the creations of the mind, such as inventions, logos, literary works, and secret recipes. There are four main types of IP in the U.S.: patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. Although navigating between them can be confusing, each one is a legal protection for something different. Below is a table that summarizes the main differences. Keep in mind that for your specific situation, you should speak to an attorney to determine what protections or remedies apply to you—contact us to discuss your options.
Supreme Court agrees to hear two IP cases
On Friday, the Supreme Court agreed to hear two IP cases regarding issues that can have large ripple effects in the patent and trademark worlds. In Amgen Inc. v. Sanofi, the Court will decide when a patent’s disclosure is sufficient, an issue it hasn’t visited in over a century. And in Abitron Austria GmbH v. Hetronic Int’l, Inc., at issue is to what extent a trademark infringer must pay damages based on foreign sales, which was last considered by the Court over 70 years ago.
MetaBirkins NFT creator can’t toss Hermès trademark suit
Although the judge’s decision isn’t on the merits of the case, it’s the first time we’ve gotten insight into how a court views the interaction between trademark law and free speech in the NFT space. Since U.S. courts rely heavily on prior case law and precedent, this decision may be significant for NFT artists and trademark owners going forward.