Do I need to copywright my business name?

You can't copyright a name, but you might want to trademark it. You may also want a fictitous business name or a coporation or LLC, and a domain name, and you need to check out your name choice to see if it's already in use.

You should hire a qualified IP/business lawyer to advise you before you invest time and money in any business to make sure you protect your rights.

Disclaimer: Please note that this answer does not constitute legal advice, and should not be relied on, since each state has different laws, each situation is fact specific, and it is impossible to evaluate a legal problem without a comprehensive consultation and review of all the facts and documents at issue. This answer does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Hats off to Pamela Koslyn. Again she's right and quick on the response.

I would, however, quibble with the statement that one might "trademark" a term. When the word trademark is used as a verb, it seems to me that it implicitly blurs the distinction under U.S. law between a REGISTERED trademark and a trademark that derives its rights to exclusivity from the actual usage of the mark, under the COMMON LAW.

Trademark rights in the U.S. may be obtained in any of three flavors. I. The chocolate fudge version is to file a trademark application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, for a fee of $325 (subject to variation for certain reasons). See link. The application would be "examined" after several months, and a Trademark Examining Attorney at the Office would determine whether the trademark meets the legal tests of being sufficiently distinctive as used in conjunction with the goods or services that the applicant identifies in the application. This includes a search for any registered marks that might be confused by the public with the proposed trademark. Expect about a year from filing to actual grant of the registration. There are also several steps that involve whethe or not the mark is actually in use on product being shipped in interstate commerce at the date the trademark application is filed, and whether someone else comes out of the woodwork to "oppose" the application after an Examining Attorney had OKd it.

II. The butter pecan version would be to file a trademark application in one or more of the States of the U.S. where the mark is being used. Government fees for such a filing vary from about $35 to $85. The application would be given but a cursory review, then "rubber stamped" and issued.

III. The vanilla version would be just to use the trademark on one's goods or services in the U.S. The more the trademark is actually used and the more the public comes to associate the trademark with one's product, the stronger one's common law rights would be. Depending on how much the trademark has been used in various locations, such rights might be strong in one place and virtually nonexistent elsewhere.

The US Patent & Trademark Office has some helpful information about how to search online to find out who might already have rights that would conflict with a proposed logo or name. See link below.

Copyright is for text or images. In the U.S. there is no longer any such thing as a common law copyright. All copyrights for new works of authorship are defined by federal law. See the link below for basics from the federal Copyright Office. Yes, to get the strongest protection, it's a good idea to REGISTER the copyright with the federal Copyright Office, though a copyright in theory springs into existence automatically as soon as copyrightable subject matter is fixed in a tangible medium of expression. It's also a good idea to put a COPYRIGHT NOTICE on anything copyrighted, though since the U.S. joined a treaty in 1989 absence of such a notice hasn't destroyed the copyright that automatically attaches to new works.

For further info, visit the Elman Technology Law website and follow me on Twitter @TechLaw_Elman.

DISCLAIMER: This posting doesn't form an attorney-client relationship or constitute legal advice. For such advice, consult an attorney and confidentially disclose all pertinent facts.

You actually need to Trademark your name or logo, or name and logo (depends on what you are using to identify your shirts). For examples, look at the tag on any clothing line (i.e., sean jean). There are also a couple of ways to secure your mark so make sure you don't try to do this crucial step by yourself. It is arguably the most important step for your business (branding yourself). Let me know if you need help.