Partner
Roger Emerson
Areas of Practice
Intellectual Property (patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets) domain name law, defamation, injuries to reputation, unfair competition
BULLETPROOFING YOUR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
Emerson Thomson Bennett has highly skilled patent, trademark, and copyright attorneys who have a background in all scientific disciplines to meet our clients’ needs. From identifying intellectual property to developing and executing a plan to ensure protection, our lawyers are prepared to help you with a comprehensive IP strategy.
What is Intellectual Property?
Intellectual property, or IP, is a creative work that you or an entity own the rights to. This can be something like a book manuscript, brand logo, secret recipe, and more. There are several systems to file and prove ownership in the United States and abroad.
Having proof of ownership for creative work in one country does not mean you have it in every country. It is common for businesses to try and steal creative ideas and brands filed in the United States to use abroad, or vice versa.
Our international IP attorneys represent clients from the United States and abroad. We have experience in helping clients take control of their IP around the globe because only you as the inventor and owner should have the right to decide who profits from your work.
Intellectual property is not one size fits all. They each have different and specific requirements that require their own legal knowledge. For example, they need to be filed differently, their protections last different lengths of time, and there are different limits to the protections they offer. The following is a brief overview of the types of intellectual property that our firm has extensive experience defending:
- Patents: These are legal licenses and legal rights to an invention that will keep other people from making it. We work closely with clients to determine the patentability of an invention and the type of application that will be required. If it is patentable, we handle the entire patent prosecution process and defend it should another entity attempt to replicate it.
- Trademarks: These are legal licenses and legal rights to a brand and its associated logos, themes, and other creative content. Through diligent trademark searches and thorough preparation, we help clients protect corporate identities, brands, product names, and other important source-identifying marks. When the time comes, we can also provide trademark prosecution on your behalf if someone uses your trademark without permission or in another way that’s illegal and hurtful to your brand.
- Copyrights: These are legal licenses and legal rights to a creative work you have created, purchased, or been given rights to. These are proof of creation, rather than a document declaring ownership. If someone has an older document or way to prove they created a work similar to yours, or your work itself before you filed the copyright, your rights can be challenged. We can help you take the necessary steps to protect your written or musical works, artistic works, or other copyrightable works through the U.S. Copyright Office. We will also provide copyright prosecution when needed.
- Trade Secrets: These are secret techniques, formulas, and devices that people and businesses use to manufacture their products. For example, the assembly line was originally a technique used by Henry Ford, but it wasn’t protected, so it became commonplace in businesses across the world. We can help you protect trade secrets that allow you to be in business and ahead of the competition. We will also provide trade secret prosecution when necessary to gain or protect the revenue flow you need.
- Internet and domain name disputes: In the age of the internet, website domains work similarly to trademarks, but require more and different legal proof due to their non-tangible nature. If another party has claimed a domain name that is the same as or confusingly similar to your company name or one of its brands, or if you are being accused of claiming another party’s domain name, we will work to obtain a favorable resolution to the dispute.
BULLETPROOFING YOUR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
We have a full-service litigation group that has aggressively litigated hundreds of cases in federal courts throughout the United States.
Our law firm’s dedicated focus on the practice of intellectual property law assures clients that their needs will be addressed efficiently and effectively with a focus on obtaining a favorable result in every case. Contact us online today to schedule a meeting with our attorneys, or you can reach us by phone at 330-434-9999.
