Blog – Adam Garson Law

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*Originally posted on October 31, 2011 Did you know that a trademark may be refused registration because it is deceptive? Yes, indeed, the “deceptively misdescriptive” doctrine is an interesting — if not tongue-twisting — principle of trademark law, which occasionally rears its head. Here’s how it works in a real-life case. Retail Brand Alliance, Inc. […]

Trademark application

*Originally posted on October 30, 2015 Looking for simplified guides to filing trademark applications on the state and federal level? LWH comes to the rescue.   We have published two guides: Six Steps for Registering a Federal Trademark; and Five Steps for Registering a Trademark in Pennsylvania. — Adam G. Garson, Esq.

Virginia Class Submarine

 In the United States, trademark applications are public disclosures from which you can learn some very important competitive information. A trademark application will reveal: 1. The identity of the owner of the trademark, and2. the nature of the goods and services to be identified by the trademark A U.S. filed trademark application is, in effect, a […]

TM is for Trademarks

*Originally posted on March 30, 2015 Trademark law in the United States is all about “use.”  When you’re using your trademark it is accumulating goodwill and you are exercising your trademark rights.  Absent “use,” your trademark rights dwindle and the trademark itself is subject to abandonment. This is an important principle, particularly, when you are […]

Centripetal Networks

Question: When is the Largest Patent Infringement Judgement in U.S. History Not a Judgement? Answer:  When the judge’s wife owns $5,000 worth of stock in the infringer! The amount at stake was $2.75 Billion.  That’s Billion, with a ‘B,’ the largest patent infringement judgement in U.S. history.  The parties were Centripetal Networks, Inc., the patent owner, […]

Designs for patents

*Originally posted on April 30, 2011 If you needed confirmation about the value and power of branding, here’s what the latest research into evolutionary biology has to say about it. The Economist recently reported that two researchers at Tilburg University — Rob Nelissen and Marijn Meijers — discovered that brand indicators may be more powerful […]

Copyright concepts

*Originally posted on March 31, 2011 Did you know that there are two trademark registers maintained by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO)? They are referred to as the “Principal” and the “Supplemental” Registers.  Typically, registration in the Principal Register is most desirable and is reserved for trademarks that the PTO determines are […]

Origami Boat

We think of the protection of intellectual property (patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets) as matters of Federal law.  What about the states?  Can, say, Pennsylvania protect an invention by state law independent of the Federal government? The principal impediment to state protection of intellectual property is the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution: “…This Constitution, and […]