Blog – Adam Garson Law

By now, anybody in the know who uses Facebook, is scrambling (or has scrambled) to get their own vanity user name. On Saturday, June 13, 2009, Facebook opened the door for an estimated 200 million users to select any “username” they wanted virtually without limitation.  The benefit is to have a URL which reads “Facebook.com/UserName,” […]

“Design patents” address how something looks; namely, the ornamental design of the object. Examples of patented designs include the appearance of a chest of drawers and the appearance. of silverware. “Design patents” are different from “utility patents,” which protect how something works, such as a better mousetrap. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is speeding […]

Real Trademarks Used in Virtual Worlds, Second Life In a lawsuit filed in April 2009, Taser International, Inc.,  the world’s largest maker of stun guns sued Linden Research Inc. (“Linden Lab”), the San Francisco based company, which runs Second Life, the online virtual world.  Taser Int’l, Inc. v. Linden Research, Inc., 2:09-cf-00811-ROS (D. Az 2009). […]

Lawyers often talk about the benefits of federal trademark registration.  Federal registration bestows upon the trademark owner the ability to bring infringement actions in federal court, it provides evidentiary presumptions about use and validity of the mark, it bestows a presumption of incontestability (after 5 years), it provides constructive notice that the mark is yours, […]

Ask a knowledgeable layperson to define “Intellectual property” he or she typically lists patents, trademarks, and copyrights.  A fourth type of intellectual property, “trade secrets,” should not be ignored.  Trade secrets consist of any idea, process, formula or other information that a company or individual wishes to protect from infringement (i.e., from being stolen) by […]

You may have heard that during his recent visit, President Obama reportedly presented Queen Elizabeth II of England with a personalized iPod loaded with 40 show tunes.  An article in the Electronic Frontier Foundation (“EFF”) web site by Fred von Lohmann recently pondered whether President Obama violated the law by presenting the Queen with digital […]

Based on patent filings thus far in 2009, the number of new applications filed in 2009 is projected to drop by more than 11 percent from 2008.   The drop in applications translates into a significant decrease in current revenue to the Patent and Trademark Office (‘PTO’) from fees.  The drop in revenue creates a major […]