Tag: trademark protection

Why Federal Registration is important

Federal registration is one of the strongest forms of protection for your trademark and offers you many benefits. In certain cases, State registration may be enough, but generally Federal registration is preferred. Those thinking about infringing on your rights will think twice knowing that you have gone through the proper steps to protect your trademark with the Federal government. Federal registration is evidence that you own your trademark and that you have the exclusive right to use the mark on your applied for goods or services in commerce. It also demonstrates that you have been using this trademark since you filed your application. Federal registration gives you the right to statutory remedies and to bring suit in federal court. Lastly, it can help you fight bootleggers and affords you rights when filing for certain foreign registrations. Federal registration demonstrates to both your customers and your competitors that you care about your trademark and think it is worth defending and protecting.

This blog is not legal advice and is not specific to your application. You should always consult an attorney.

How to use a trademark

Your trademark is special to you, your brand, and your company. There are several rules of thumb that should be followed to preserve this special status. To maintain a trademark, it is important that the public recognize it is a trademark. This can be accomplished by using generic terms alongside your mark so that people realize your mark is in fact a trademark and not a name for the goods. When placing your trademark on goods or marketing material your trademark should stand out from other text so it is clear that it is separate and different. You may also use the TM ™ symbol to indicate you claim the term as a trademark. Your mark does not have to be registered to use the TM symbol. If your trademark is registered, you can use the registered symbol ® or a statutory notice. The registered symbol cannot be used if your mark is not registered! You worked hard to get your trademark so ensure you are using it correctly and in a way that will not jeopardize its protections.

This blog is not legal advice and is not specific to your application. You should always consult an attorney.

Use it or lose it

Merely thinking of a great trademark is not enough, you have to use it. This does not mean that you have to be selling your goods, but you have to be using it publicly. Public use of your trademark will establish your priority and increase your protection. A few examples of public use other than actually selling your goods include presale announcements and soliciting/accepting orders. If you are not yet using your trademark, but plan on using it in the future and want to establish your priority as soon as possible, you can file an intent to use application. While your trademark will still not be fully registered until a statement of use is filed and accepted, the benefit is that once accepted your priority date will be the date you filed the application. In addition to using your trademark in a public manner, you must use your trademark in continuous commercial use. Just like you are dependent on your trademark for protection, your trademark is dependent on your use.

This blog is not legal advice and is not specific to your application. You should always consult an attorney.

An overview of trade dress

Trade dress is the entirety of your product and can be used as a trademark. Trade dress is what make your goods unique. It includes all of your products feature’s including shape, size, color, images, etc. Trade dress usually comes in two forms, as a package/label or a product design. In order to protect your trade dress mark it is important that the trade dress be nonfunctional, indicate the source of your goods because it is distinctive, and that use by a competitor would cause confusion. Trade dress that is not inherently distinctive will have to have acquired a secondary meaning in order to be protected. If you have been using the trade dress for a long time, had success selling it, spent a lot on advertising, or even had media coverage then it is possible your trade dress has acquired a secondary meaning. There are many other factors that go into determining whether or not you should use your trade dress as a trademark, but protecting what makes your products standout from the competition is always important.

This blog is not legal advice and is not specific to your application. You should always consult an attorney.