At the Aldrich Law Firm, Ltd., we assist business owners in Las Vegas with their intellectual property needs. Intellectual property is a broad term that can encompass numerous aspects of your business. From the logo on the sign on your company’s building to the software and inventions that are a part of your products and services, these elements of intellectual property may be protected by law from infringement.
If you do not fully understand the differences between copyrighted work, patents and trademarks, you are not alone. These intellectual property categories are often confused for one another. Fortunately, each type is easily distinguishable, once you know the basics. The United States Patent and Trademark Office defines a copyright as the legal protection given to “works of authorship,” regardless of having been professionally published or not. Copyrighted work may include novels, textbooks, music, poetry and software code.
If you invented a product or idea, you might seek a patent to protect others from copying your work and claiming it as their own. Finally, a trademark might be the most visible of the different types of intellectual property. You would develop your company’s trademarks to make your business distinguishable to consumers and stand out from other brands. Everything from your company’s catchphrase to the jingle you developed for your commercials could be protected under trademark law. As explained in previous blog posts, it helps to have a strong and unique trademark that does not resemble those from other companies.
Intellectual property law exists to protect your ideas and images from being copied and used by others. You may learn more about corporate disagreements by visiting our commercial litigation page.
