Intellectual Property Law Specialists

While the Internet has made the dissemination of ideas much easier, it has also created more intellectual property rights issues, making an experienced intellectual property or Internet attorney invaluable to your business. The Kotzker Law Group has built a reputation as the forward-thinking law group with the expertise our clients trust in the areas of Intellectual Property, Internet law, Internet marketing law and business law.

Intellectual Property

Intellectual property can be a large and somewhat confusing subject ranging from copyright and trademark issues to blatant plagiarism. We want to help ensure that your business’ ideas and language remain your property.

Typical issues that arise within intellectual property cases are:

  • Intellectual property purchases and sales
  • Drafting work for hire and transfer agreements
  • Patents, copyrights and trademarks
  • Trade secrets
  • Intellectual property licenses
  • Financing with intellectual property assets
  • Intellectual property due diligence
  • Domain name disputes
  • Intellectual property protection and management

Overview

Unique words and designs that represent the “brand name” or “brand identity” of your products and / or services should be protected. The brand identity of a product is commonly known as a trademark and the brand identity for a service is known as a service mark. Your mark, the brand name or design logo associated with your product or service, is the symbol of your hard work, the symbol of the quality of your product or service, the symbol of your skill. Your mark enhances the value of your product and service.  The Kotzker Law Group can help you build, maintain, and protect these valuable assets.

The Kotzker Law group knows how to protect your brand identity and can advise you in choosing a mark that would not cause competitors to question your right to use or register the mark. We can assure you that we are not only successful in obtaining registrations, but once your mark is registered, The Kotzker Law Group will keep track of all maintenance deadlines and send notifications to you when action must be taken.

Specifically, a trademark is the brand name that appears on your product so that consumers can easily identify your product from those of your competitor. If you or your company offer services, the brand is referred to as a service mark. You can also acquire rights to 1) A unique overall appearance of the interior layout and design style of a restaurant, 2) A unique, non-functional design of the packaging used for your product, 3) The unique color of your product if consumers associate that color only with your product, 4) and A unique sound that is used in used in connection with your product or service. You can register word marks, design marks (logos), slogans, or a combination of these elements. The Kotzker Law Group can also assist you in registering collective trademarks and service marks, collective membership marks and certification marks.

Don’t wait until there’s a problem.

The Kotzker Law Group recommends registering your mark as soon as you have chosen an appropriate brand name or design mark (logo). The process begins with a comprehensive screening search in various online databases, including the United States Patent and Trademark Office database, to make sure someone else hasn’t already applied for or registered the mark you wish to use and register.

While discovering that your mark is already in use is disappointing, it’s also a very good way to avoid a potentially expensive legal action. You don’t want to invest substantial sums and build a successful business and then learn that you have to change your brand name, your logo, or you slogan. Additionally, you don’t want the expense of defending an infringement action or paying out money to someone else because you are using a mark that is confusingly similar to his or her mark.

Get the protection you need.

Once The Kotzker Law Group determines there are no conflicts, we can register your mark for you by filing an application through the following:

  • United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for US registration,
  • Community Trade Mark (CTM) for European Union registration, administered by the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM) and located in Alicante, Spain
  • Trademark filings under the Madrid Protocol, or
  • Any country of your choice.

A U.S. federal registration allows you to use your mark throughout the United States. If a person or an entity uses a confusingly similar mark to yours, you would have the right to stop their use of the mark. Additionally, by registering your mark, you obtain statutory rights that are not available if you merely use your mark without registration. For example, if someone willfully uses your mark without your permission, you might be able to obtain three times the amount of your actual damages.

What It Protects

A trademark / service mark protects words, logos, phrases or the combination thereof which are specifically associated with goods or services.

There are federal, state and foreign trademarks. You may obtain a federal trademark if you are currently using or intend to use your mark in commerce (i.e. commerce that which Congress may control). State trademarks are available in each state and may be a good option if you do not intend to cross state lines with your business. Foreign marks are important if you intend to provide your goods or services in other countries. There are of course many countries and the rules in each one of those countries differ, however the use of the Community trademark (covers EU countries) or the Madrid Protocol are both good ways to obtain a lot of coverage without having to file in each country.

Trademark Search and Clearing

So you do not infringe on others

The primary purpose behind a trademark search is to insure you do not infringe on some other person’s rights. The Kotzker Law Group provides both word and design searches here in the Unites States and everywhere else in the world.

Trademark Application

A registered mark allows you to use your mark throughout the United States. If a person or an entity uses a confusingly similar mark to yours, you may have the right to stop their use of the mark. Additionally, by registering your mark, you obtain statutory rights that are not available if you merely use your mark without registration. For example, if someone willfully uses your mark without your permission, you might be able to obtain three times the amount of your actual damages.

Policing Trademarks

Once a trademark is registered, a company must be very mindful of their competition and ways to protect themselves against confusingly similar variations. Trademark watch and policing services are vital when it comes to maintaining the value of the mark and assuring consumers of the quality of the goods and services provided.  Due to the growing economy, policing one’s trademark has gradually become a difficult task that often requires professional assistance.  The Kotzker Law Group offers expert and reliable policing services that monitor the ever-growing market, alleviating the dilemma of finding a balance between enough and too much policing.