Trademarks, What Not to Do: Common Mistakes and Misconceptions (Vol. 3 of 5)
A trademark is any name, word, symbol or device used by a manufacturer or merchant to identify his or her product or goods in order to distinguish them from those goods manufactured or sold by others.
The basic tenant upon which trademark law is founded is the business tort, unfair competition, under which a seller using a mark similar to one already in use could be liable for the buyer's likely confusion between two products or services. The law of trademark addresses the narrower issue of whether the confusion arises from the marks used to identify the goods.
In 1946 Congress passed the Lanham Act, which provides for federal registration of trademarks and their protection against infringement (enforced by federal courts). A trademark arises from regular usage of the mark, and only lasts as long as the usage continues.
To learn more about protecting your intellectual property rights, contact an experienced attorney who can answer all of you questions and recommend which registrations to consider. Contact Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A. a Jacksonville and Ponte Vedra Beach law firm.
