Florek & Counsel is a full-service intellectual property law firm that offers litigation and transactional services in all areas of IP.
Industry-Leading Experience
Experts have estimated that as much as 80% of the value of publicly traded companies in America comes from intangible assets. Accordingly, it is more important than ever to ensure intellectual property is appropriately protected, registered, and strategically licensed.
The Law Offices of Florek & Counsel provide professional representation covering all aspects of intellectual property law and licensing. Our firm has a close working relationship with numerous domestic and international registered patent attorneys, certified engineers, chemists, licensing agents, and various other professionals and corporate entities across a wide range of industries, ensuring that our clients are equipped with the best intellectual property representation available.
Copyrights
(Protection of an eexpression of an idea)
The United States Copyright Office affords copyright protection to the authors of original works of authorship in the following types of works:
- Literary works
- Musical works
- Dramatic works
- Pantomimes and choreographic works
- Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works
- Motion pictures and other audiovisual works
- Sound recordings
- Architectural works
The main thing to consider when evaluating whether or not an aspect of your work falls into one of these categories, is whether you are attempting to protect the expression of the idea, or just the idea itself? A copyright is only attainable for works that are in their concrete form (the expression of an idea).
Registering a federal copyright under Section 106 of the 1976 Copyright Act gives the owner of a copyright the exclusive right to do the following, generally:
- Reproduce the work in copies or phonorecords;
- Prepare derivative works based upon the work;
- Transfer ownership by rental, lease, or lending;
- Distribute copies or phonorecords of the work to the public by sale or other choreographic works, pantomimes;
- Perform the work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, andaudio transmission; and
- Perform the work publicly (in the case of sound recordings) by means of a digital.
Trademarks & Trade dress
Those looking to commercially profit from their work, or their live services, often seek to obtain trademarks in their name(s), mark(s) and/or logo(s). Obtaining a federally-registered trademark puts the world on record notice that particular goods or services are derived solely from an identifiable source. Obtaining a federally-registered Trademark grants the holder the exclusive right to use the mark within a specified class of goods throughout the world.
Trade dress is “essentially a business’s total image and overall appearance.” (Blue Bell Bio-Medical v. Cin-Bad, Inc., 864 F.2d 1253, 1256 [5th Cir. 1989]). Trade dress may include “features such as size, shape, color or color combinations, texture, graphics, or even particular sales techniques.” (John J. Harland Co. v. Clarke Checks, Inc., 711 F.2d 966, 980 [11th Cir. 1983]).
Trade dress is the protection of a specific visual impression. This form of IP functions similarly to trademarks in the sense that it also serves as a source identifier for one’s goods and services.
It should be noted that the U.S. Supreme Court held in Two Pesos, Inc. v. Taco Cabana, Inc., 112 S.Ct. 2753 [1992]), that inherently distinctive trade dress is protectable, even without proof of secondary meaning.
For more information about the IP services we offer, contact us
*While the articles and information on these pages aim to provide an accurate, objective and up-to-date portrayal and review of the facts concerning various disciplines within today’s legal profession, the information contained within these articles is intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. No reader should act on the basis of the content without seeking appropriate legal counsel.*