Brian Russ Law, Inc. is a United States trademark legal firm centered on helping businesses build and protect their brands. We get the need to differentiate your brand from your competitors. A small business owner and serial entrepreneur, lawyer Brian gets the struggles of small business owners and how securing brand protection is vital when setting your business apart from the competition. Brian works with businesses throughout the United States work through common trademark issues like clearance searches, infringement assessment, trademark registration, USPTO office action responses, infringement litigation, use defense, and more. If you’re looking for top-notch trademark legal support in Affton, Missouri, then you’ve come to the right place.

“Hang on now,” you may be thinking, “I heard Brian Russ Law, Inc. a California law firm? Can they help clients outside of California, like in Affton or Missouri?” Yes! We help customers nationwide with trademark registration support services. The United States Patent Trademark Office allows attorneys licensed anywhere in the US to represent clients in USPTO proceedings. Also check out our trademark-specific web presence at BrianTheTrademarkLawyer.com.

What Is A Trademark Attorney?

A trademark lawyer is someone with experience in trademark registration, protection, and litigation support who regularly works with creatives. Trademark attorneys typically have experience in the entire trademark lifecycle from the critical clearance search all the way through litigation support. When choosing a lawyer to protect you’re the brand of your company, make sure to work with a lawyer who has no problem working in Affton, like Brian Russ Law, Inc. 

How Can a Trademark Law Firm Empower Your Company?

Protecting brands is a trademark attorney’s primary role. A company is the best placed to protect its brand before or shortly after its launch. The amount of money businesses spend on start-up products and marketing is enormous, and sometimes, they find out that their preferred name can't be used because another competitor has locked up the name. Intellectual property is a critical issue for startups, especially when the brand and recognition are primary drivers of revenue from target consumers. Give us a call if you want to lock down your business's name with federal trademark protection. 

What To Look For In a Trademark Lawyer

Doing nothing to protect your name can cause problems for a business entrepreneur. Even though it's easy to do some trademark forms on your own, you are at risk of doing something wrong and cleaning up the mess will take 10x the time, money, and effort of doing it right in the first place. We find the best trademark attorneys are like us - experienced in helping businesses of all sizes from across the globe in a variety of industries. When choosing a trademark attorney, consider their experience and online reviews as well as how personable they are. To have the best synergy for your brand, it’s important to find an attorney who you feel comfortable talking with. 

The Top Three Areas Small Businesses Need Trademark Support

1.	BUSINESS NAME REGISTRATION
We commonly see entrepreneurs think that setting up an LLC or registering a DBA/FBN statement means their business name is trademarked and safe from dispute. This is not correct. Setting up an LLC or a Fictitious Business Name Statement does not equal trademark protection. Although there are some common law trademark rights, the strongest trademark protection is securing a federal trademark from the United States Patent Trademark Office. You can get governmental approvals to use your name for your business, but those governmental agencies don’t check the federal trademark database. It's important for any business owner to retain a lawyer to assess the trademark risk of using their business name. 
2. BRAND PROTECTION
Brand protection is necessary for most small businesses. Imagine this – you start a hamburger restaurant on the main drag of Affton} called “Tommy Tequila’s Good Eats” and you spend years building your reputation. Your customers know your business and know your brand, but you don’t federally register your brand’s name. You happen to go to Vegas for the weekend, and you find a year-old diner with the same exact name as your business. Sadly, your options for enforcement and protection would be limited since you have no federal protection for your brand’s name and the Vegas restaurant is across state lines. Another tricky scenario is how to deal with a cease-and-desist notice when your brand name is the same as one that was federally registered by another organization prior to you using yours. 
3. INFRINGEMENT STRATEGY.
It is important to have a strategy in place in case someone infringes on your name. There are many situations where someone might accidentally infringe your brand. When an infringement occurs, sending a demand notice to the offender can make them stop. In other cases, where the offender is purposefully You might need to file a federal lawsuit for a temporary and permanent injunction to stop the infringer, plus you can try to recover damages including attorney’s fees. 

Trademark Lawyer Brian Russ is Ready to Serve Affton} Businesses

The answer is straightforward – contactconnect with} Brian Russ Law, Inc. today. We’re fielding calls from potential new clients every day. Having an lawyer on your team to protect your brand can help you avoid costly mistakes and give you invaluable peace of mind.