Bruce E. Burdick’s Answers

Q:"Thinking about doing a trademark search for my small bushiness logo to avoid trademark infringement" Answer: Great idea, you should do that before settling on a trademark or logo. Q:"What happens if I do not file a trademark application?." Answer: You might lose your trademark to someone who does file a trademark application, particularly if you are second to use and they are first.. Q:"Can someone else copy my logo and then file a lawsuit against me?" Answer: Even if you are...

Read 15 USC 1125. It would be very difficult for LLC B to comply if LLC A is statewide, is on the Internet, or is national. B really needs to talk to A and work out a consent agreement to set ground rules for avoiding confusion or future legal trouble is very likely. Review the Sleekcraft factors for the key considerations in the 9th Circuit. If in doubt call in a trademark attorney.

If a Court having proper jurisdiction of the parties says it infringes, it infringes, otherwise not. We can't say with just the respective marks and services. Seems these are pretty close. For the 9th Circuit, you need to Google "sleekcraft factors" and you will locate the 8 factors a Judge must evaluate to decide the issue. If you are using or proposing to use one of these 2 marks, then you need to hire a Washington IP lawyer. Search "John Whitaker" on Avvo and give him a call and,...

Yes,but there are some special steps you need to take: 1. Advertise them accurately - resale not original sale. 2. Disclaim your relationship (none) to the brand name owner. 3. Don't modify the shoes if you are using the brand name. 4. Don't rebrand them as yours. 5. Consult a trademark lawyer, as there may be other issues special to your specific business model.

Relying on Wikipedia to formulate legal conclusions is very risky. Terms like "label" can mean many things. To entertainment lawyers, "label" often refers to one of the top 4 music recording companies. EMI/Capitol, SONY/BMG, WEA or UMG. Those labels are very real companies, and very big and powerful companies. The labels each have a bunch of record labels they have created or acquired. See for example the lists at http://www.lacostamusic.com/record-labels/recorddistributormajorlabellist.htm...

Intellectual property includes patents, trademarks, copyrights, Internet law, entertainment law, franchise law, and other law relating to creations of the mind of man. So all patent attorneys are intellectual property lawyers, but not all intellectual property lawyers are patent attorneys. Also not all patent lawyers are registered patent attorneys. Only registered patent attorneys can represent you before the United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) in patent matters, as they have...

Patent attorneys simply don't disclose client inventions without approval. We have an implied secrecy agreement that is more restrictive than any you would propose we sign. It comes from our state licensing board, which in most states is the Supreme Court of the state. If we get caught violating that, we get disbarred. We are also licensed by the US Patent & TM Office and if we get caught stealing a client invention we get disbarred. Rest assured, no patent attorney is going to risk his career...

No, second opinions are legal and even a good idea. Having multiple attorneys is the norm in very complex business deals, such as mergers & acquisitions & divestitures, as there are almost always a lot of very specialized issues that require special legal expertise. Using 2 patent attorneys is possible. However, you need to know that in patent prosecution the PTO will only correspond with one, and you as patentee can select which one is designated to receive that correspondence. Also,...

In that situation, you would be liable (strict liability applies) to the copyright owner. You would have a breach of warranty claim against the "someone" who sold you "a graphic design work" and warranted he is the sole creator and owner. You can 100% avoid this risk by buying 100% insurance coverage, by having that "someone" be a large solvent reputable graphic design firm with deep pockets that stands behind their warranties, or by doing the work yourself. L2BL: Warranties are only as...

You need to take this to your local family law court and get it resolved. As a preparation go to the sight www.proudtoparent.org and take their online course (it is pretty quick) and you will see the kinds of considerations that will be uppermost in the Judge's mind - putting the children first. The key thing is to keep the kids out of the conflict, let them know it is not their fault, that they are loved and that they are safe. If they would be safe visiting their paternal grandmother, then...