Intellectual Property Lawyers in the USA

Like virtually every other activity Americans engage in on a daily basis, even video games are subject to the restrictions and protections of the law. This is also an area of increasing interest as hundreds of new companies come into the video game market every year by developing the wildly popular game apps played on mobile phones and tablet devices.

If a copyrighted work is considered a work made for hire, the employer or other person for whom the work was made is deemed the owner of the copyright unless there has been a written agreement to the contrary signed by both parties. Therefore, it is important for employees and consultants to understand the meaning of a “work for hire.”

If you want to see how your intellectual property (IP) knowledge stacks up, you can check out a new web-based IP Awareness Assessment Tool recently unveiled by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). It is designed to help manufacturers, small businesses, entrepreneurs, and independent inventors easily assess their IP knowledge.

Yes, you can patent happy hour, but it is not what you think. A patent was recently granted for a “virtual happy hour” that offers discounted products on gaming and social networking sites at designated times.

Highway signs for famous roadways are increasingly popping up on a variety of consumer merchandise from home décor to t-shirts. But can companies who use these logos obtain trademark protection?

There are four main areas of intellectual property that any company or individual must protect because it is so easy to do so and can save you a great deal of money and time on litigation.

British manufacturer Dyson, famous for their revolutionary vacuum cleaners and bladeless fans, has instituted legal action against electronics giant Samsung, citing patent infringements.

Many companies have developed their own unique means of doing what they do, making their product, or handling their information. If your way of doing things is better than your competition's, they may naturally want to find out how you are doing it. So, protecting your competitive advantage – your trade secrets – can be critical to growing your business. And, one of the best ways to do that is through the use of the nondisclosure agreement.

A patent is a valuable property right because it excludes others from “making, using, offering for sale, or selling your invention throughout the United States or importing the invention into the United States” for a certain period of time. However, before embarking on the patent process, the first step is to determine if your invention can indeed be patented.

U.S. law no longer requires the use of a copyright notice. However, prior law did contain such a requirement, and the use
of a notice is still relevant to the copyright status of older works.