Library Search
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Selecting Good Trademarks ( June 2005 )
The trademark you select identifies the source of your product or service and distinguishes it from the goods or services of other companies. A trademark should be memorable; should attract the eye, ear and mind of the potential purchaser; should elicit desirable consumer responses; and otherwise be distinctive. However, there is an inherent conflict between common marketing practices and trademark law. -
Intellectual Property in M&A Transactions: What Diligence is Due? ( August 2003 )
Concern about intellectual property issues in M&A transactions has been growing. The importance of intellectual property and how it will be handled is dependent on the facts of each transaction, but since due diligence is simply an investigation into the status of a business, it includes discovery or confirmation about what’s right and what’s wrong as evidenced in patents and trademarks. This article focuses on those due diligence issues. -
It's No Secret - The Supreme Court Rules on the Federal Trademark Dilution Act ( August 2003 )
The United States Supreme Court does not accept many trademark cases for review, and so on those rare occasions when the Court interprets the Lanham Act, trademark lawyers and their clients are usually eager to read what the Court has to say. -
Supreme Court Opinion Rules that the Federal Trademark Dilution Act ("FTDA") Requires Proof of Actual Dilution ( March 2003 )
In a surprising decision with important ramifications for owners of famous trademarks, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously on March 4, 2003 that the Federal Trademark Dilution Act ("FTDA") requires proof of actual dilution. <i>Mosely v. V Secret Catalogue, Inc.</i>, No. 01-1015. Justice Stevens, writing for the Court, concluded that the FTDA "unambiguously requires a showing of actual dilution, rather than a likelihood of dilution." -
I Know It When I See It: A Practitioner's Guide To Identifying Third Party Trademarks That Are Likely To Dilute ( October 2002 )
<i>Dilution</i>. To a chemist, it refers to the process of reducing the concentration of a solute in solution, usually simply by mixing with more solvent. But to a trademark lawyer, it is the raison de'etre for the Federal Trademark Dilution Act (FTDA), which provides in part that the owner of a famous mark is entitled to relief against another person's commercial use in commerce of a mark, "if such use begins after the mark has become famous and causes dilution of the distinctive quality of the mark." -
Branding in the Digital Age: A Brief Primer ( March 2002 )
To compete effectively, a business must achieve market recognition for itself and its products. The economic expansion of the last decade has greatly increased the number of businesses trying to get attention from prospective customers. At the same time, the Internet and other new venues for marketing have allowed for novel ways to compete for that attention. These factors present increasingly difficult challenges for businesses. -
How To Select A Strong Company Name Or Product Name ( February 2000 )
This article summarizes the trademark process and provides suggestions on how one selects a strong name for a product or good. -
Trademark Issues on the Internet ( October 2000 )
Introduction The Internet has changed the way the world does business.. -
IP Law Bulletin, March 22, 2000: Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Samara Brothers, Inc. ( March 2000 )
This article reviews the recent US Supreme Court decision in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Samara Brothers, Inc. whereby the Court discussed the issue of when a product's design is protected as an unregistered trade dress. -
Supreme Court Narrows Trade Dress Protections ( April 2000 )
This article reviews the recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court (Wal Mart, Inc. vs. Samara Brothers) whereby the Court raised the bar on proving a trade dress claim. The Court ruled that trade dress can never be inherently distinctive.