Blogs on Patent & Trademark cases

What Are The Different Types of Patent Searches?

Different Types of Patent Searches – an Overview

People are surprised to learn that multiple types of patent searches can be conducted, and the search selected will depend upon the search’s rationale. This article provides an overview of the different types of patent searches that can be done.

Novelty or Patentability Search

Novelty searches are conducted to determine the likelihood of getting a patent through the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). This is a vitally important search because you do not want to waste your time and resources on filing a patent application for something that is already subject to an existing patent.

Another benefit associated with this type of search is that it can often yield valuable information to the inventors, such as competitors in the same space.

You may be asking yourself, “what exactly are the steps that need to be taken to conduct a novelty search?” Well, the first step is for the inventor to clearly identify the invention and list out all the elements and key aspects that they believe are novel. Second, a comprehensive search needs to be conducted through the USPTO database for patents and publications, Google, and other databases to assess whether any of the search results involve the same elements as those described by the inventor.

Freedom to Operate Search

A Freedom to Operate (FTO) search is done to help determine whether it would be prudent to commercialize the product in view of existing patents. In other words, the FTO search determines if the inventor is free to operate and commercialize the invention without the fear of getting sued for infringement. The focus of an FTO search and opinion is on the claim portion of the existing, in-force patents, rather than the disclosure portion of the prior art as in a novelty search. As a result, FTO searches tend to be more complex and time-intensive.

The steps involved to conduct an FTO search are similar to those taken during a novelty search. Just like a novelty search, the inventor must clearly identify the invention and list out all the elements and key aspects that they believe are novel. A searcher will conduct a comprehensive search focusing only on in-force patents and published patent applications in the relevant jurisdiction. After that, your patent attorney must then review and analyze the search results, specifically by scrutinizing the independent claims of the relevant patents and researching the prosecution history of those patents. The patent attorney will then assess if there is literal infringement or equivalent infringement for the elements described by the inventor.

The objective of an FTO search is to assess whether the proposed invention infringes upon any patents found in the FTO search. If they do, the inventor can decide whether they want to stop any further efforts related to the commercialization of the proposed invention, engage in a redesign, or approach the patent holder for possible licensing negotiations.

Validity Search

Validity searches are usually conducted when there is a request by a potential defendant or a defendant in an actual patent infringement lawsuit seeking to invalidate the patentee’s patent as a defense to patent infringement. The objective is to determine whether the identified patent is valid or enforceable.

In other instances, a validity search and opinion may be used prior to purchasing or licensing certain patents to determine the strength of those patents.

**Have Questions? Contact an Experienced and Reputable Patent Attorney in Los Angeles Today**

If you have an invention and want to obtain a patent, retaining the services of a reputable and highly experienced patent lawyer, such as the professionals at Omni Legal Group, is imperative for a successful outcome. Whether you are in need of, or have, a provisional patent, non-provisional patent, design patent, utility patent, or plant patent application, Omni Legal Group is here to help. Omni Legal Group is a premier Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law firm located in Los Angeles. For further information or to schedule a consultation please contact Omni Legal Group at 855.433.2226 or visit www.OmniLegalGroup.com to learn more.

How to Navigate Class Selection in a Trademark Application

How to Navigate Class Selection in a Trademark Application

Registering a trademark can be a difficult and stressful process. Why? Because one of the key aspects of the trademark application process is selecting the correct “class” for your trademark. There are 45 classes in total, and it is up to you, the applicant, to select the right one.

The class selection process may be intimidating, as each class relates to a specific type of good or service. However, there are often ambiguities and misinterpretations of what good or service should fall into which class. This is where the counsel and guidance of an experienced trademark lawyer can prove to be invaluable.

For example, your product might fall under one of the most common trademark classes, class 42 (also known as the “Science and Technology Services” class).

This class is geared towards services handled by trained professionals such as chemists, engineers, computer programmers, physicists, etc. for services that deal with scientific and technical services such as:

Software design services,
Technical research,
Computer programming,
Chemistry services,
Architectural services,
Biological research,
Chemistry research
Cloud computing and seeding services,
Computer technology consulting,
Construction drafting,
Medical research,
Electronic data storage, and
Environmental protection research.

For example, a class 42 trademark might be pursued for cosmetic research, biological research, and even computer data recovery.

Classes That Commonly Coordinated with Class 42

Class 42 includes an array of services in technical and scientific fields. However, there are situations in which class 42 does not cover all areas of technical services such as medical services or the installation of computer software. In such circumstances, it is essential that you invest the time, or seek the counsel of an experienced trademark attorney, to identify other classes that cover your service. It is important to understand the different components of what you are looking to register as a trademark. It is possible that your product or service requires filing in multiple classes to cover the different components of what you are looking to protect with a trademark. Some classes commonly related with Class 42 include:

Class 9: Electrical and Scientific Apparatus,
Class 36: Insurance and Finance Services,
Class 37: Construction and Repair Services,
Class 38: Telecommunications Services,
Class 39: Shipping and Travel Services,
Class 40: Material Treatment Services,
Class 41: Education and Entertainment Services,
Class 43: Food Services,
Class 44: Medical and Vet Services, and
Class 45: Legal and Security Services.

Registering a Class 42 Trademark

The first step in registering a Class 42 trademark is to conduct a trademark search for existing marks within that class and the related classes. Once this search is complete, the next step is to prepare and file your trademark application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A trademark examiner will then review your application, and if all requirements are met, a registration may be issued. The last step of the trademark process is to maintain your trademark status. If these steps seem intimidating or overwhelming, it is strongly recommended you contact an experienced trademark attorney to help guide you through the process.

Have Questions? Contact the Reputable Omni Legal Group Today

As you can see, properly assessing and choosing the class your service falls under can be difficult and is rife with potential pitfalls. Nevertheless, if you have the counsel of an experienced trademark attorney in Los Angeles, such as the expert professionals at Omni Legal Group, you can rest assured that everything will be handled accordingly. Omni Legal Group is a premier Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law firm located in Los Angeles. Our legal team of highly experienced patent & trademark attorneys, specialize in protecting your intellectual property securing your patents, trademarks, and copyrights. Whether it’s a provisional patent, non-provisional patent, design patent, utility patent, or plant patent application, Omni Legal Group will see it through. For further information or to schedule an appointment please call 855.433.2226 or visit www.OmniLegalGroup.com to learn more.

How Can an Unregistered Mark Create Problems for a Trademark Application?

Common Law Rights in Trademark Approval

Many prospective trademark applicants wrongly assume that the Examining Attorneys at the Trademark Office, when conducting trademark searches for the applicant’s proposed mark, will search common law rights (i.e., use rights and unregistered rights) along with the registered and pending marks.

The Examining Attorneys at the USPTO lack the resources to conduct common law searches. As a result, when an applicant fails to conduct a comprehensive search prior to filing for a trademark, you could wind up investing time and resources to register the trademark at the federal level, but that mark may still be infringing on a third party’s trademark rights at the common law level.

How Common Law Can Muck Up Your Mark

The United States adheres to a “first to use” trademark system, not a “first to file” system like many other countries. As a result, common law rights (i.e., use rights) are important and should not be neglected.

For example, if a third-party individual or company possesses senior common law rights, they may be able to initiate a proceeding with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board to either oppose your pending trademark application or cancel the trademark registration altogether.

This can be particularly frustrating since the third-party individual or business with senior common law rights does not need to have filed or registered the mark. Rather, they simply must have used the mark in commerce before your application is filed.

As mentioned, it is extremely important for applicants to conduct common law searches in advance of filing a trademark application with the USPTO.

Increase in Trademark Applications

The Trademark Office has been experiencing a large surge of trademark applications in the past few years, largely due to the proliferation of e-commerce sites. For example, the USPTO received over 92,000 trademark applications in December 2020, which is an increase of 172 percent over December 2019.

As a result of this massive uptick in application filings, you need to be patient when filing your trademark application. Typically, pre-surge, it would take less than four months for an Examining Attorney to be assigned and to issue an Office Action. Nowadays, the wait time is between seven and eight months for a full review of a trademark application and issuance of an Office Action. Other delays have occurred with Responses to Offices Actions, review of Statements of Use, and post-registration review.

For example, post-registration processing, which prior to the Coronavirus pandemic, typically took around thirty days for review by an Examining Attorney, is taking between 60 and 90 days during the pandemic and surge in applications.

Need Help with a Trademark Application? Contact Omni Legal Today

An experienced trademark attorney at Omni Legal Group will assist by researching your trademark and filing your federal trademark application. We are here to guide and assist you through the entire trademark registration process.

Have Questions? Contact an Experienced and Reputable Trademark Attorney in Los Angeles Today

If you are looking for professional assistance in completing a comprehensive trademark search and filing a trademark application, contact an experienced trademark lawyer at the reputable Omni Legal Group. Omni Legal Group is a premier Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law firm located in Los Angeles. For further information or to schedule a consultation, please contact Omni Legal Group at 855.433.2226 or visit www.OmniLegalGroup.com to learn more.

When Should a Patent Application be Filed?

The Importance of Timely Filing a Patent Application

Proper timing for filing a patent application can be challenging but is extremely important. If you fail to timely file a patent application, there are several factors that may prohibit you from securing a patent. Nevertheless, it is also possible to file too early. Hence, it is important to understand the importance of the filing date for your patent application.

According to statutory provisions, if two or more inventors file patent applications for the same invention, priority is given to the inventor who first filed a patent application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). There is no consideration given to who actually conceived the invention first. As a result, the filing date of your patent application is extremely important and has a significant impact on whether you are able to succeed in obtaining a patent.

Because of the significant role of the application filing date, certain precautions should be undertaken to avoid potential challenges with your application. For example, it is important to consider filing an application before telling others about the invention, including investment partners or other companies. While it is true that a person cannot file a patent application for an invention unless they actually invented it, divulging certain information may lead to others trying to file an application for your invention before you can file the application.

Deadlines for Filing a Patent Application

In addition to beating third parties in the race to the USPTO, disclosures associated with a patent application may create additional deadlines. If these deadlines are not properly observed, it may lead to your application being thrown out and prohibited from obtaining a patent.

The first relevant deadline is one year after the first public disclosure of your invention. A public disclosure requires that someone (not necessarily the inventor) disclose to a member of the public a non-confidential communication that describes the invention in sufficient detail to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to make and use that invention. Such disclosures often occur through printed publications, such as advertising material or scientific journals, or verbal disclosures, such as those made during a presentation. Once a public disclosure of the invention is made, the inventor has one year to file a patent application before they are barred from obtaining a patent for that invention.

The second relevant deadline is created one year after the invention is first used in public. While the inventor’s experimental use of the invention does not trigger the one-year time bar, any public use by the inventor or another who is not under a restriction or an obligation to secrecy by the inventor will trigger the beginning of the one-year time bar.

The third relevant deadline is created one year after the invention is first offered for sale anywhere in the world, even if an actual sale is not made. A mere offer to sell the invention will begin the one-year clock regardless of whether your invention has been brought to the market or put into practice.

As a result, these potential bars to patentability highlight the importance of filing an application as soon as possible in order to avoid missing out on securing a potentially valuable patent.

Have Questions? Contact an Experienced Patent Attorney in Los Angeles Today

If you have any questions about when you should file a patent application, contact a highly experienced and reputable patent attorney in Los Angeles today. Omni Legal Group is a premier Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law firm located in Los Angeles. Our legal team of highly experienced patent attorneys specialize in protecting your intellectual property securing your patents, trademarks, and copyrights. Whether it’s a provisional patent, non-provisional patent, design patent, utility patent, or plant patent application, Omni Legal Group will see it through. For further information or to schedule an appointment, please call 855.433.2226 or visit www.OmniLegalGroup.com to learn more.

What is a trademark notice of publication?

Trademark Notice of Publication

The process of registering a trademark is complex and rife with potential opposition and roadblocks. While a Notice of Publication is a promising step in registering your trademark, third parties have the opportunity to contest your mark, which may prevent registration. Once a trademark application is drafted and filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the application is examined by a trademark examining attorney within the USPTO. If the trademark examining attorney determines that your application complies with applicable statutes, rules, and fees, the trademark will be published in the trademark “Official Gazette” (i.e., a weekly publication that is published every Tuesday, including federal holidays, and available to the public on the USPTO website).

Before publication in the Official Gazette, however, the trademark applicant will receive a notice of publication disclosing the date that the mark will be published, usually two months after the trademark application is approved for publication. This date carries significant value as it marks the day that the trademark is “published for opposition.” Essentially, the day the trademark is published in the Official Gazette, a 30-day window is opened whereby members of the public can file an opposition to the registration of the published mark.

If a successful opposition is mounted against your mark, it can prevent the trademark from being registered. However, if this 30-day window closes with no oppositions filed, the trademark application will be able to move to the next stage toward registration.

Potential Public Opposition

If opposition is raised, the opposing party is required to file a notice of opposition with the USPTO Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) and pay a fee. The TTAB is an administrative tribunal within the USPTO that functions similarly to a federal court in that they hear and decide adversarial proceedings between parties. However, the only issue the TTAB may decide is the validity of a trademark.

A Notice of Opposition must state the grounds on which the opposing party believes that the trademark should not be registered on the principal register. During the opposition, each party may present evidence and witnesses to further their claims that the trademark should or should not be registered. Once all evidence is submitted and all arguments have been heard, the TTAB will issue a decision within about six months. In total, the process may take years.

Have Questions? Contact an Experienced Trademark Attorney in Los Angeles Today

It is incredibly important to protect your brand identity; hence it is in your best interest to invest the time and resources to properly secure a trademark registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. For further information or to retain the services of an experienced and knowledgeable trademark attorney in Los Angeles such as the professionals at the Omni Legal Group please call 855.433.2226 or visit www.OmniLegalGroup.com to learn more.

Omni Legal Group is a premier Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law firm located in Los Angeles with experienced lawyers standing by to help you.

What are the rules for patent drawings?

Important Guidelines for Utility Patent Drawings

If you are applying for a utility patent, you need to provide the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) with a drawing, or drawings, of your invention or innovation. Failing to provide sufficient drawings, or providing incorrect drawings, can be a death knell for your utility patent application. Why? Because there are typically no do-overs when it comes to patent drawings. The USPTO does not allow patent applications to add new matter once filed. As a result, it is nearly impossible to fix defective drawings since any corrections would inherently add new matter.

Hence, it is imperative to invest time and care into the drawing and ensure it is done properly, whether by you or a professional third party.

Guidelines

Below is a list of the primary formatting rules for patent drawings, according to the USPTO.

The drawings should be in black and white as colored drawings are generally not allowed.
Photographs are only allowed in case there is no other realistic way of conveying the details of the invention.
Formulas and tables are allowable forms of drawings.
The drawings should have multiple views to explain the invention accurately.
The size of the patent drawing should allow viewing of the details discussed in the patent application with the understanding the drawing may be reduced in size during publication.
Shading the drawings is encouraged if it will help depict the invention.
Reference characters should point to the detail of the drawing it refers to. While both numbers and the English letters are allowable reference characters, numbers are preferred.
The paper should be white, pliable, muted in appearance (not shiny), and robust.
The drawing must fit on either 21.0 cm by 29.7 cm or 27.9 cm by 21.6 cm paper with a 2.5 cm top and left margin, 1.5 cm right margin, and a 1 cm bottom margin.
The drawing may only be on one side of the paper.

Hiring a Professional

Generally, budget allowing, you should consider hiring a professional who understands the USPTO requirements and is adept at drafting mechanical drawings. Why? It will ensure the highest-quality drawing possible. Moreover, professionals understand the USPTO requirements.

Self-Generated Drawings

If you lack the financial resources to hire a professional drafter, it may be useful for you, the inventor, to attempt to draw the invention. In fact, you may be best suited to manage the drawing since you probably have a better understanding of the features of the invention.

Utilizing Computer Software

If you are terrified at the prospect of sitting down at a table and trying to create a respectable drawing for your utility patent, consider using a computer-aided design software . This type of software comes in handy when you are not a great artist, or you need to create shapes and 3D images to properly illustrate the innovation or invention.

Have Questions? Contact an Experienced and Reputable Patent Attorney in Los Angeles Today

If you have an invention and want to obtain a patent, retaining the services of a reputable and highly experienced patent attorney, such as the professionals at Omni Legal Group, is imperative for a successful outcome. Whether you are in need of, or have, a provisional patent, non-provisional patent, design patent, utility patent, or plant patent application, Omni Legal Group is here to help. Omni Legal Group is a premier Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law firm located in Los Angeles. For further information or to schedule a consultation please contact Omni Legal Group at 855.433.2226 or visit www.OmniLegalGroup.com to learn more.

What can and cannot be patented?

Many different types of innovations and inventions can be patented in the United States. Nevertheless, there are certain things that generally cannot be patented; hence, it is important to have a baseline of knowledge of what qualifies for a patent before beginning the patent application process.

Different Types of Patents

Patents are typically broken down into specific patent types. The types of patents include:

Design and utility patents are, by far, the most common types of patents pursued in the United States.

Design Patent

Generally, a design patent protects the ornamental features of an invention, i.e., what it looks like. For example, you can get a design patent on a new lampshade as long as it looks different from other lampshades. Design patents can be used effectively to prevent direct knock-offs of an entire inventions as well as protect a portion of an invention, such as a bumper of a vehicle.

Utility Patent

Utility patents are used to protect processes/methods (a method of making a golf ball), apparatuses/machines (mechanical devices from hammers to rocket engines), and composition of matter (chemical structures in medication). Utility patents are the most common type of patent sought and apply to the broadest range of inventions. Depending on the type of utility patent sought, it may provide protection of the underlying invention or how the invention operates.

Plant Patent

A plant patent is typically pursued when you have created a brand-new plant subspecies. As you might expect, this type of patent is fairly rare. Nevertheless, if you are in need of a plant patent, make sure to retain the services of a patent lawyer who is experienced in this specialized area of patent law.

What Cannot be Patented

There are specific limitations on what can be patented in the United States. Why? Because your invention may actually be protected by another type of intellectual property protection, or your invention is not eligible for a patent for other reasons. For example, if you are looking to protect a business name or logo, then you need to secure a trademark, not a patent. Similarly, if you are looking to protect a piece of music, a photograph, or another type of artistic expression, then you need to secure a copyright, not a patent.

A trickier aspect of patent law arises with phone applications (i.e., apps). It is important to understand that, in general, anything that is new and useful is likely eligible for a patent. However, being “useful” is insufficient. This is particularly true of software and types of phone applications. The inability to patent a phone app is because, in many instances, they are just spreadsheets on steroids that are presented in an easier-to-read-or more understandable format. Hence, the USPTO may not always consider a phone app to be an invention.

Have Questions about the Patent Application Process? Contact the Highly Reputable Omni Legal Group Today

If you have an invention and want to obtain a patent, retaining the services of a reputable and experienced patent attorney is extremely important. Whether you are in need of, or have, a provisional patent, non-provisional patent, design patent, utility patent, or plant patent application, Omni Legal Group is here to help. Omni Legal Group is a premier Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law firm located in Los Angeles. For further information or to schedule a consultation please contact Omni Legal Group at 855.433.2226 or visit www.OmniLegalGroup.com to learn more.

How Likely Is a Trademark Rejection?

According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), most applications for trademarks are successful. However, around 1-in-5 trademark applications get rejected annually.

For those who spend significant time and resources applying for a trademark, that rejection ratio may seem shocking. Applicants must engage in a trademark search, clearance, and extensive paperwork.

Below, we will discuss two of the most common reasons for trademark rejections.

Probability of Confusion

The likelihood of confusion may arise if your mark is not totally unique. Could your trademark be easily conflated with something else? If so, USPTO may reject your application.

When you apply, a USPTO examining attorney will consider your proposed trademark. They will decide if your mark is too similar to another mark. There is no single or absolute standard for determining that a proposed trademark presents a likelihood of confusion.

If the color scheme, text, or other aesthetic choice is overly similar to an established mark, be prepared for rejection. Rejections are not final. You can defend your application through the appeals process.

Use of Surnames

Using a surname in your trademark is not a guarantee of rejection. Still, the USPTO policy regarding surnames is complex. While you can use a surname, the name cannot be the “primary significance” attributed to your trademark. In other words, you cannot trademark the name of a family or lineage. This is a reasonable policy because the names of private citizens should not be subject to IP laws.

There is an exception to this rule, however. If you have already built a particular surname into a recognizable brand, your application will probably be accepted. That is because established brands are primarily associated with their products rather than the name itself.

**Take Action by Contacting an Experienced Trademark Attorney in Los Angeles Today**

If you want to avoid trademark rejection, it is imperative to contact a legal professional. There is tremendous value in completing a trademark assignment the right way and in your best interest to retain the services of an experienced and knowledgeable trademark attorney in Los Angeles such as the professionals at the Omni Legal Group. Omni Legal Group is a premier Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law firm located in Los Angeles. For further information or to schedule a consultation please contact Omni Legal Group at 855.433.2226 or visit www.OmniLegalGroup.com to learn more.

Why is it important to be proactive during patent pendency?

When an individual finds themselves languishing in the “patent pending” phase of the application process, they often ask, “why is this taking so long?” and “should I be concerned with the status of my application?” These are perfectly reasonable and important questions. The short answer is that you should not worry very much if you find yourself in the “patent pending” phase for several months or even years. Why? Because it is important to understand that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an extremely busy government agency tasked with analyzing thousands of patent and trademark applications each year. This means delays are fairly standard.

In most instances, a patent will remain pending until one of two events occurs: (1) the patent is issued, or (2) the patent application goes into abandonment.

What To Do During the Pendency

It is important to understand that you do not have to sit on your hands during the pendency of your patent application. In fact, you should use the time your patent is pending to monetize your invention by either obtaining licenses or making and selling the invention. The timeframe can widely vary on when a determination is ultimately rendered. Nevertheless, you can typically expect the first response to take anywhere from 12 to 24 months.

It is extremely important to take full advantage of the patent pending time to get your invention out into the marketplace. Why? Because any sales you obtain during this period can be used to attract additional investors for your business, keep your competition in check while you scale up, and/or prove to the USPTO that your invention warrants a patent.

For example, if you sell thousands of units, it is apparent the marketplace believes you have an innovative product. The signal from the marketplace has the power to impact the USPTO’s decision. In fact, there have been instances where a patent examiner was overruled on appeal for failing to take sales into consideration when reviewing a patent application.

When a response, known as an office action, is rendered by the USPTO, you have three months to respond. They also accept the inventor’s input on the Examiner’s objections/rejections of the patent application claims during this time.

Have Questions? Contact an Experienced and Reputable Patent Attorney in Los Angeles Today

If you have an invention and want to obtain a patent, retaining the services of a reputable and highly experienced patent attorney, such as the professionals at Omni Legal Group, is imperative for a successful outcome. Whether you are in need of, or have, a provisional patent, non-provisional patent, design patent, utility patent, or plant patent application, Omni Legal Group is here to help. Omni Legal Group is a premier Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law firm located in Los Angeles. For further information or to schedule a consultation, please contact Omni Legal Group at 855.433.2226 or visit www.OmniLegalGroup.com to learn more.

The Importance of Trademark Registration

When you decide to start a business, one of the things you consider is how to distinguish your business from other businesses offering the same goods or services as you do. You come up with a name that customers can remember and build up enough goodwill so that you are the first business they think of when they want the goods or service that you provide. You might be feeling content with your setup until you hear that there is another business with a similar mark offering the same goods and services. Now, you’re in panic mode because your mark is not registered.

What is a Trademark?

A trademark is any word, name, symbol, or device, or a combination of them, which represents your goods and services. It serves as a source identifier for your goods and services, distinguishing it from those produced by others. A trademark gives you rights over the use of a particular mark for your goods and services and prohibits others from using the same or similar marks to represent similar goods or services.

Do you Have to Register your Trademark to Get Legal Protection?

Your trademark is not validated by registration. Indeed, there is no requirement to register your trademark to for legal protection to exist. Your trademark takes effect as soon as you present it to your customers as a way to identify your goods and services and distinguish them from others. Registration of your mark is not mandatory. As long as you can establish first use of the mark, you can still use it in commerce and enforce it against any subsequent user who infringes on your use of the mark.

While registration is not required for your trademark to enjoy legal protection, there are valuable benefits to registration.

Prima Facie Evidence of Validity

Registering your trademark provides prima facie evidence of the mark’s validity. This means that your mark is presumed to be valid until proven otherwise.

Constructive Notice of Claim of Ownership

When you register your trademark, it is listed in the trademark registry, which is accessible to the public. Therefore, the consuming public, including potential infringers, are on constructive notice of your trademark rights. This means that an infringer cannot deny knowledge of the existence of your trademark. Any other person or business thinking of using the same or similar mark as yours will have the benefit of the trademark register to show them that the same or similar mark is already in use by another business.

Broader Legal Protection

Under common law, trademark protection is extended to the first user of the mark, within the geographic market of the business, against any subsequent user of the same or similar mark. If your mark is not registered, you limit any possibilities for expansion of your business outside of your current geographic market. This means that the use of your mark could be limited to one county if there is a registered competing mark.

The internet has become an important aspect of trade and has given many businesses an opportunity to expand beyond their geographic markets. Not registering your trademark may limit your ability to expand and take advantage of new markets.

Take Action by Contacting an Experienced Trademark Attorney in Los Angeles Today

It is incredibly important to protect your brand identity; hence, it is in your best interest to invest the time and resources to secure a trademark registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Once registered, it will provide you exclusive right to use the mark with specific goods or services. Furthermore, there is tremendous value in completing a trademark assignment the right way. In either instance, you should retain the services of an experienced and knowledgeable trademark attorney in Los Angeles such as the professionals at the Omni Legal Group. Omni Legal Group is a premier Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law firm located in Los Angeles. For further information or to schedule a consultation please contact Omni Legal Group at 855.433.2226 or visit www.OmniLegalGroup.com to learn more.

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