Arizona Intellectual Property Laws

Aspects of Non-Disclosure Agreements

I’m going to answer the question: “what should an NDA include?” First of all, an NDA is a non-disclosure agreement. It’s a contract that someone signs and it needs to include an agreement of what it is that’s going to be kept confidential. If it just says, I’m going to keep some broad idea confidential and there’s no linking so that you can concretely say what it is that they needed to keep confidential, it’s going to be hard to enforce.

It needs to be reasonable in scope and time. The important thing about a non-disclosure agreement is to make sure that they will not be disclosing things that are not currently publicly available. To find out more about how to draft the right non-disclosure agreement for your business, give me a call. I’m Wayne Carroll at Inspired Idea Solutions Law Firm.

By: Wayne Carroll

Trade Secret

I’m going to answer the question, what is a trade secret? A trade secret is simply anything that is valuable in a business and is kept secret. Even after you file a patent application, the ideas in there are not published. So they actually fall within the trade secret category. It does overlap with some things, but it is valuable and it’s protected by contracts. I’m Wayne Carroll with Inspired Ideas Solutions Law Firm.

By: Wayne Carroll

Retaining Patentability

I’m going to answer the question, “how to retain patentability when presenting to potential customers?” The number one way is going to be have a patent application on file so that you are patent pending before you talk to customers.

So there’s a lot of risk to presenting to potential customers if you don’t have that patent application on file. We are now in a first to file patent system in the United States. If your customers go and file a patent application try to claim it as their own, yours will be first. I also recommend a non-disclosure agreement even after your patent is filed. For more information on how to protect your patent or protect your rights to a patent contact me. I’m Wayne Carroll at Inspired Idea Solutions Law Firm.

By: Wayne Carroll

What is a Trademark

What is a trademark? A trademark is the exclusive right to use a term or a symbol in connection with your goods or what you’re selling. It is designed to connect that symbol to your company so that people know where to go to get more of the good stuff you’re delivering. You want to make sure that that is yours exclusive and that people don’t get confused by seeing somebody else’s symbol, thinking maybe that’s you, maybe that’s not you. So make sure you have a good distinctive trademark. For more questions, please contact me. I’m Wayne Carroll, Inspired Idea Solutions Law Firm.

By: Wayne Carroll

Brand & Trademark Availability

In this video I’m going to answer the question: “how do I know if a brand name or a trademark is available?” Many people think that because they are able to register a name with the Secretary of State or the Corporation Commission in their state that the name is available as a brand or trademark.

Trademark Registration

A trademark is not the same as registering your business. A trademark is a word or symbol that distinguishes and identifies your business as the source of what you sell. In order to establish a trademark nationwide you must do more than merrily claim it or claim the domain name. You must register with the United States Patent & Trademark Office and use the trademark. When you apply for a trademark, the trademark office will do a search to determine if you meet the requirements for a trademark. There are two main things that they look for and these are the same things that you should look for to determine if your selected brand name is available.

Trademark Availability

First, does your trademark distinguish your brand from other brands already in use? And second, can your trademark identify your brand as a brand? To distinguish your brand, the trademark must be significantly different than other brands in use. If your trademark is similar to the way other trademarks look, sound, or create a similar impression as other trademarks, the trademark is not likely available and your application may be rejected. The prior trademarks need to be used for related products or services to what you are selling but “related” is a broad term. And your application can be rejected based on someone selling very different merchandise.

The trademark office primarily searches in the databases of current trademarks in the United States. But a trademark is not truly available if someone else is using the trademark even without a registration. If they are using the trademark prior to your use, they have at least some rights that can block you from using the trademark.

If your chosen brand name cannot distinguish your brand from others, then it’s not available. So, this is the second requirement to get a brand that you can protect with exclusive rights it must also be able to identify your brand as a brand. Your trademark must be more than generic terms for what you are selling. The trademark also cannot be merrily descriptive of your goods.

For example, crispy may be descriptive for bacon and low fat may be descriptive for yogurt. The strongest trademarks have no elements of descriptiveness in the brand name. For example Xerox or Kodak. At Inspired Ideas Solutions Law Firm we perform high quality trademark searches to determine if your chosen trademark is available not just in the trademark office database but based on registrations from all 50 states, business publications, and other databases. We help you make the determination of whether to invest time and money into building a brand around a trademark. That brand can serve your business for years to come.

By: Wayne Carroll

What is a copyright?

Copyright protects content. You produce content when you take pictures, when you write your own ideas on a website, when you design even the look and feel of a website. Some of the most well known copyrighted content are movies, novels. Those things can be protected and when they are highly valuable, I recommend a registration of those trademarks. To find out more, contact me. I’m Wayne Carroll with Inspired Idea Solutions Law Firm.

By: Wayne Carroll

Patent Research

I want to address the question: “Can I do my own patent search?” My answer is yes and no. Most clients that come to me, have done some searching for their invention. They have searched on Google, at the patent office website, they have been to stores to look for their invention, they have checked on Amazon and other sites to try to find their invention. And they usually tell me that no one is selling their invention.

Other times inventors tell me, they know the industry and who is doing research in the industry, and no one has developed anything like their solution. These actions are patent searching. Sometimes my clients tell me that no one is producing and selling the solution, but they did find an old publication that shows the basics of their invention. In some cases I must advice them, that even though no one is selling the invention, the old publication is likely to prevent them from getting a patent on the invention.

You can do your own patent search, and there are a lot of great tools available that were not available ten years ago when I started working as a patent attorney. If you do your own patent searching, you need to save the publications that you think are the closest to your invention. You have a duty to tell the patent office of any publications you know about that are close to your invention.

Why did I say, “No, you cannot do your own patent search?” Patent searching is a highly technical activity, and there are many databases that are not easily accessible without paying. Also, most inventors do not know everywhere they need to look, or what will be used to reject their patent application in the patent office. The patent office hires examiners, and trains them to search for prior publications, not just patents.

Before you invest in your invention with a patent application, you should consider investing in a high quality patent search. You want a search that is better than a search that the patent office will do. At Inspired Ideas Solutions Law Firm, our searching staff have deep experience searching for patents, and have access to the same databases that the patent office is likely to search to determine whether to reject your patent application. Yes, you can do your own patent search with the tools that are free and available today. But you are not likely to go deep enough without the help of an experienced professional.

By: Wayne Carroll

Trademark Infringement

What happens if you unknowingly use someone else’s trademark? It still can be trademark infringement and you can still have liability for confusing the public. Trademark law is about helping the public make more efficient decisions by not being confused as to the source. If you get a federally registered trademark, it covers the entire nation, whether or not you’re using it all over the nation. But if you don’t get a federally registered trademark, your rights to your trademark are limited to the area in which you are using it. It can be a problem and it can be trademark infringement if you are using somebody else’s trademark even without knowing it. If you receive a cease and desist letter from another trademark holder, I recommend that you contact a knowledgeable trademark attorney. I’m Wayne Carroll with Inspired Idea Solutions Law Firm. To find out more, give me a call.

By: Wayne Carroll

What is a Patent

What is a patent? A patent is an exclusive right to be able to make use and sell an invention. In the United States it lasts for (20) years if it’s a utility. There are some other types of patents, there is the design patent that protects the way something looks, not the way it functions, and that’s a (14) year right. So there is multiple ways to get a patent, but it protects an idea when you’re talking about a utility patent. I’m Wayne Carroll with Inspired Ideas Solutions Law Firm.

By: Wayne Carroll