|
International Protection
Directions
Career Opportunities
**New Job posting**
Firm Photos
Support Staff
Bourque & Associates
P.A.
835 Hanover St., Suite
301
Manchester, NH 03104
Tel:
603-623-5111
Tel: 800-539-5111
Fax: 603-624-1432
dbourque@nhpatlaw.com
|
x
|
Trademarks
When a unique word(s),
phrase, slogan, logo, or
other unique element is used in conjunction with the goods or services of a
business, it is entitled to trademark protection. A trademark must be
distinguishable from other trademarks for similar goods and services and may
not merely describe the goods or services which it identifies. Like patents,
trademarks are territorial; that is, they are only valid in the country
granting such rights.
U.S. federal trademark registrations are available to those individuals and
businesses who are actually engaged in or have an intention to become engaged
in interstate commerce. Federal trademark registrations
prohibit others from using identical or confusingly similar trademarks for
similar goods and services. The registration of trademarks, like patent
prosecution, involves correspondence and negotiation with the
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. However, unlike a patent, trademark rights
can be enforced indefinitely unless the trademark is abandoned or becomes
generic. The Firm's Attorneys can help in determining if a trademark is
available for use by a particular client and what can be done, thereafter, to
preserve and enforce the client's trademarks rights.
Copyrights
are used to protect the
tangible (physical) form of original works of authorship. The types of work
that can be protected by copyright include, but are not limited to, musical
compositions and lyrics, recorded musical performances, literary works such
as books or poetry, motion pictures, sculpture, paintings and other works of
visual art, and computer software.
Copyrights do not protect the ideas underlying these works but rather,
protect the specific expression of those ideas that are embodied in the works
themselves. This means that the holder of a copyright is protected against
someone using the particular copyrighted work without permission, but cannot
stop that person from using the underlying idea or facts to produce a
different work.
Unlike patents and trademarks, copyrights extend nearly world wide, without
special registration requirements for the most part. Copyrights arise
automatically when the work is created, but, in the case of U.S. authors, should
be registered with the Register of Copyrights to maximize the author's rights
if, later, there is an instance of unauthorized use. Although not required by
law, every work should bear a copyright notice, which consists of (or the word copyright), the year of
publication, and the copyright holder's name. For example: Copyright 1998 George Washington. A
work that is created (fixed in tangible form for the first time) on or after
January 1, 1978, is automatically protected from the moment of its creation
and is ordinarily given a term enduring for the author's life plus an
additional 70 years after the author's death. In the case of " a
joint work prepared by two or more authors who did not work for hire"
the term lasts for 70 years after the last surviving author's death.
For works made for hire, (as in the case of an employee preparing a work
during the normal course of his/her employment) and for anonymous and
pseudonymous works (unless the author's identity is revealed in Copyright
Office records), the duration of copyright will be 95 years from publication
for 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter.
A copyright gives its owner several
exclusive rights, which only the owner can exercise. Unless the rights are
licensed by the owner to another person, the copyright owner is the only
person who can make
copies (reproductions) of the copyrighted work. The owner is also the only
person who can adapt the work, for example, by preparing a film script based
on the owner's copyrighted book. In addition, the copyright holder has
exclusive control over public distribution,
performance, and display of the work.
Trade Secrets
Unlike most other forms
of intellectual property, trade secrets are not protected through application
to, or
registration with, the federal or state government. Their only protection
involves the systems, practices, and legally binding agreements formed by the
holder of the secret. Trade secrets generally involve processes or methods
which provide a business with a competitive advantage.
The life span of a trade secret is potentially unlimited. Its status as a
trade secret can, however, be lost if it is discovered by someone else. For
this reason, trade secrets are best utilized for inventions that cannot be
patented or are not easily reverse-engineered, such as
the formulas for many popular soft drinks.
The holder of a trade secret must take strong steps to protect it.
These steps include developing rigorous internal policies, including creating
and enforcing non-disclosure agreements for pertinent employees, vendors,
associates and strategic partners, and by
restricting access to the secret to a limited number of people with a
legitimate need to know it.
|
|