Folsom Intellectual Property Lawyer

Folsom Intellectual Property Attorney

With all the new technology and innovation that drives most modern-day industries, it’s more important than ever for businesses to protect their intellectual property. It is essential for business owners to secure their ideas and protect their rights. A Folsom intellectual property lawyer can assist business owners in applying the appropriate legal coverage necessary to keep their ideas safe.

Peterson Watts Law Group, LLP, offers more than 65 years of combined legal experience that comprises countless intellectual property cases. We are a leader in business law, and our legal team stays well-informed of intellectual property laws. We understand that each one of our clients is unique, and we are committed to providing unique solutions to fit their needs. Our hands-on approach makes us an effective and powerful force for our clients.

What Is Intellectual Property?

Intellectual property is ideas created by people, including innovations, trademark designs, and brand names, just to name a few examples. Intellectual property is federally regulated, but a Folsom intellectual property attorney can provide assistance in registering for intellectual property rights in Folsom. These laws exist to protect people’s ideas. In theory, they prevent others from stealing the ideas of the original creator or inventor.

Advantages of Securing Intellectual Property Rights

When individuals take measures to secure their intellectual property rights, they are the only ones allowed to profit from those protected products. Furthermore, they have the right to define how others may use their ideas or inventions.

An example of this is the Folsom based Intel Corporation’s company name trademark. The company originally trademarked the name ‘Intel’ in the 1970s. Therefore, they have the exclusive right to impose guidelines on how the word may be used. For instance, one legal stipulation they have for use of the word in regard to their brand is that it can only be used as an adjective and not as a noun.

Sutter Health is another locally based company with both a trademarked logo and company name. Based out of Sacramento, the company recently announced that it broke ground on the new $145 million Folsom Care Complex. Once completed, their globally recognized logo will adorn the top of the new facility and be seen by anyone travelling down the busy Highway 50 Corridor.

When to Hire an Intellectual Property Lawyer

If you think you might need to hire an intellectual property lawyer, then you most likely do. At the very least, it is wise to have a discussion with an experienced legal professional regarding your options for protecting the rights to your ideas, services, or products. Specifically, a Folsom intellectual property attorney can help you apply for any of the following rights:

• Trademark rights: These are rights to concepts associated with a brand, such as a name, a logo, or a symbol. Trademarks distinguish your brand from other brands.
• Patent rights: A patent is a protection of an invention. It allows the inventor or creator to have exclusive rights to their intellectual property, allowing control over how it is used, manufactured, or sold.
• Copyrights: These rights protect larger works of content, such as books, screenplays, music, or works of art. Copyrights give the creator exclusive rights as to how their work is used or produced and prohibit others from reproducing their intellectual property without their permission.
• Trade secrets: Trade secrets include confidential insider information that gives a business a competitive edge. While recipes cannot be copyrighted, they can be protected under trade secret rights. These rights also protect intellectual property, such as formulas or ways of doing business or making a product, such as the recipe for Coca-Cola or the algorithm for Google’s search engine.

Why Choose Us?

Peterson Watts Law Group, LLP, takes a personal interest in every client we represent because we understand that every business has something unique to offer. Consequently, all of our clients have different circumstances under which they operate their business. We take client-attorney confidentiality seriously, so you can feel confident and trust us with your intellectual property legal needs.

FAQs

Q: What Are the Four Types of Intellectual Property Law?

A: The four types of intellectual property law are patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. Patents protect inventions, while the protection of trade secrets secures confidential information, such as recipes or formulas used in your business. Trademarks protect words, phrases, logos, symbols, or sounds that are unique to a company’s brand identity. Copyrights protect larger works of creative content, such as music, software, and stories.

Q: What Are the Seven Types of Intellectual Property Rights?

A: Expanding on the traditional four types of intellectual property rights, the seven types of intellectual property rights include patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets, as well as industrial design rights, geographical indications, and plant variety rights. Industrial design rights protect the form or appearance of a product. Geographical indications identify specific locations for having particular characteristic traits or a certain reputation. Plant variety rights protect the discoverers of new plant varieties.

Q: What Does Not Qualify as Intellectual Property?

A: Intellectual property rights do not protect facts, ideas, or phenomena that are not created by humans, including intangible ideas or concepts. Mathematical principles, basic facts, abstract ideas, or frequently used phrases, for example, are not eligible for protection under intellectual property rights. In addition, works that are no longer within the time frame of copyright or patent protection are considered public domain and are no longer eligible for intellectual property protection.

Q: What Things Cannot Be Copyrighted?

A: Specific things that cannot be copyrighted include math facts, like ‘2+2=4,’ basic domain names or URLs, and common phrases. For example, you cannot copyright the phrase ‘The good life.’ Basic facts like ‘the sky is blue’ or ‘the grass is green’ are also ineligible for protection under copyright laws. However, domain names can be trademarked if they function like a trademark to identify goods or services offered by a company.

Talk to a Knowledgeable Folsom Intellectual Property Lawyer

If you have questions regarding the intellectual property rights of businesses or need assistance applying for intellectual property rights for your ideas, products, or services, the legal team at Peterson Watts Law Group, LLP, can offer solutions that fit your needs. Contact our astute legal team to schedule a consultation and learn how you can optimize your business with our legal services.