Brian Russ Law, Inc. provides trademark registration services for clients in all 50 states, including Maryland.
Examples of Trademark Needs in Towson, Maryland
A lot of people ask us, ‘Why do I need a trademark for my business?’ And the simple answer to that is your businesses name, logo, and branding are inherently valuable. You want to ensure that you’ve protected your business as your brand’s value grows and continues to appreciate over time. For example, if you’re in Towson, or driving on Interstate 695, you’ve probably seen tons of billboards for corporations and mom-and-pop shops alike. And they’ve all got a certain feel to them, their branding. And that branding is valuable. You want to make sure that if you start a shop in Cloisters, that somebody two states over isn’t going to steal your idea and name and do the same business.
A great example I love to use is professional sports teams. Their need to have a protected brand name, logo, slogan, and such is invaluable because so much of their team’s value is wrapped up in their identity. There are lots of sports teams, but for fans, there’s always ‘my team’. Think about the teams near Campus Hills and Armaugh Village, like the Maryland State Tigers and the Northeastern Huskies. You can probably picture their logo in your mind, and you know that nobody else is using their names and logos to promote a professional sports team.
The Importance of a Trademark’s Classification
A trademark is a word, phrase, logo, or other symbol that distinguishes one company’s goods from those of another. A business without a trademark cannot have exclusive rights to the mark and will be unable to stop competitors from using it. For example, if someone creates the name ‘Happy Days’ for a nursery school and starts using it for their businesses, the owner of the Happy Days toy store cannot stop them from doing so.
To register a trademark, you will need to go through the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Generally, registering will protect your trademark across the United States in the specified international class. The registration process also puts others on notice of your use of the trademark.
Learn about Federal Trademarks for your Business
Trademarks are used to identify goods and services that come from a certain company. Trademarking is important because it helps keep your trademark exclusive.
A federal trademark registration is important for two reasons. First, it is easier to win a case against infringers if you have federal trademarks instead of only state trademarks (or only common law trademarks). Second, you can sue for damages in a federal court instead of state court, which means you can get additional damages awarded to you and increased remedies.
The USPTO Principal Register also provides a notice function- it alerts others that you’re the original owner of the mark. A good example of this is if you’ve filed for a trademark which is spelled in a unique way- if people search the register using your spelling, they will be alerted that someone else has already registered the mark, and could cause unintentional infringement.
Hiring an attorney for your trademark will save you time and money
You should hire a trademark lawyer who will help you to register your trademark and provide guidance in the process.
We suggest that our clients not try to trademark their brand themselves, but rather go through an online service. We will walk you through the process in order to avoid any legal problems. Please contact us with your concerns.
We make sure not to leave you a mess and help you do it right the first time. It is advised that if you are applying for a trademark that you avoid doing so with marks that are already in use.
Copyright Vs. Trademark: What’s The Difference?
Trademarking is a business method to display ownership of a trademark and corresponding trademarks. If the company wants to sell products, they will use their company name as a trademark. Trademarking is mainly used for advertising purposes- customers identify the product by the specific brand in question.
Copyrights protect an author, which means nobody can use the content without permission from the creator. However, registering the copyright provides more protection. It’s important to know the difference between a trademark and a copyright so that your company’s rights are adequately protected.