A ‘design patent’ is a monopoly granted by the government to make, use and sell a product having a particular appearance. Design patents protect how a product looks, not what it does. A person who copies a product protected by a patent, including a product protected by a design patent, will be ordered to stop […]
Trademark
‘Trade Names’ or ‘Trademarks’?
March 7, 2024
Trademark, Uncategorized
Do you know what distinguishes a trade name from a trademark? Clients frequently ask us to file a trademark application for the name of their company without any understanding of whether the company name is being used as a trademark. So, what is the difference? To put it simply, a trade name under section 45 of the […]
Trader Joe’s and the Long-Arm Reach of the Lanham Act
February 26, 2024
Trademark
If you thought that you were immune from prosecution for infringing a U.S. registered trademark in a foreign country, be forewarned. In late 2011, Michael Norman Hallatt, a Canadian citizen and U.S. Lawful Permanent Resident, began visiting a Bellingham, Washington Trader Joe’s (“TJ’s”) store several times a week to buy large quantities of Trader Joe’s […]
3 Things First Time Inventors Should Know
February 19, 2024
Trademark
Trademarks and First-Time Inventors Understandably, the solo inventor wants to focus on her invention. Does it work as designed? Who shall I hire to create a prototype? Where shall it be manufactured? How and when shall it be protected by patent? Can I afford it? These are important concerns but they should not be the […]
Ask Dr. Copyright© Protecting a Cookie
February 12, 2024
Trademark
Dear Doc: Me want to protect cookie. How can do that? Signed,A Certain Monster Dear Mr. Monster: A recent case from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals may help you to understand how cookies are protected. More than 50 years ago, Ezaki Glico Kabushiki Kaisha developed “Pocky” – a thin, elongated biscuit partially covered with chocolate. About […]
As a Philadelphia-area law firm, we can’t resist talking about Philadelphia Eagles-related trademarks. Most Eagles fans and anybody who’s watched a Philadelphia Eagles game are familiar with the “brotherly shove” play. You’re not a football fan, let us explain. The “Brotherly Shove” football play — also referred to as the “tush push” — is essentially a […]
“Everybody vs. Racism” is a Nice Sentiment, but is it a Trademark?
December 14, 2023
Trademark
We are frequently requested to file trademark applications for popular slogans, whether political or otherwise. Sometimes such slogans may be registrable but only if the mark acts as a source identifier and is used accordingly. Often, the applicant simply wishes to monetize the use of a popular slogan that everybody else uses without any thought […]
Trade Dress: Where Patents and Trademarks Converge
November 27, 2023
Trademark
Trademarks provide important intellectual property protection to businesses and to their products. Trademarks identify the source or origin of goods or services. A related sub-concept of trademarks that also provides broad intellectual property protection to a business is the concept of trade dress. Trade dress protects a product’s unique design, look and feel. It covers […]
Keeping the Cat In the Bag When Filing a Trademark Application
November 13, 2023
Trademark
One of the potential downsides of filing a trademark application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office is that the application, including the identity of the owner, is of public record, accessible to anybody. If secrecy is important to your company’s marketing strategy then filing a trademark application is not an act to be […]
X-treme Rebranding Part II: A Case of Reverse Confusion
November 9, 2023
Trademark
In trademark speak, “reverse confusion” occurs whenever the junior user of a trademark dominates the market such that the senior user of the same or a confusingly similar mark loses its accumulated goodwill in the marketplace. This was the subject of our recent article about the case of Ironhawk Technologies, Inc. v. DropBox, Inc. in which the U.S Court of […]