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What is Intellectual Property?

Intellectual property is the area of law that deals with protecting the rights of those who create original works. It covers everything from original plays and novels to inventions and company identification marks. The purpose of intellectual property laws are to encourage new technologies, artistic expressions and inventions while promoting economic growth. When individuals know that their creative work will be protected and that they can benefit from their labor, they are more likely to continue to produce things that create jobs, develop new technology, make processes more efficient, and create beauty in the world around us.

There are three main mechanisms for protecting intellectual property in the United States: copyrights, patents and trademarks.

Copyrights
Copyrights protect the expressive arts. They give owners exclusive rights to reproduce their work, publicly display or perform their work, and create derivative works. Additionally, owners are given economic rights to financially benefit from their work and prohibit others from doing so without their permission. It is important to realize that copyrights do not protect ideas, only how they’re expressed.

Patents
Patents protect an invention from being made, sold or used by others for a certain period of time. There are three different types of patents in the United States:

Utility Patents—these patents protect inventions that have a specific function, including things like chemicals, machines, and technology.

Design Patents—these patents protect the unique way a manufactured object appears.

Plant Patents—these patents protect plant varieties that are asexually reproduced, including hybrids.

Inventors may not assume that their creation is patented unless they apply and are approved for a patent by the US Patent and Trademark Office. This process can be complex and time consuming. It is a good idea to hire an intellectual property attorney to make sure you file the appropriate paperwork and get the patent you need to protect your invention and make it profitable.

Trademarks
Trademarks protect the names and identifying marks of products and companies. The purpose of trademarks is to make it easy for consumers to distinguish competitors from each other. Trademarks are automatically assumed once a business begins using a certain mark to identify its company, and may use the symbol “TM” without filing their symbol or name with the government.

There are strict laws in place to protect intellectual property rights. When intellectual property rights are violated, it is important to hire an intellectual property lawyer. An experienced attorney can help you sue for damages that include lost royalties. If your case is successful, the person who violated your intellectual property rights may be required to pay for all of your legal fees in addition to compensating you for using your work without your permission.

Intellectual Property Articles

• Copyright Basics - A copyright provides protection for original works of authorship, fixed in a tangible medium of expression.
• How and Why to Protect Your Intellectual Property - Protecting your intellectual property is crucial to the success of your business.
• Implementing a Plan to Protect Your Company's Trade Secrets - If you are a new and growing business, part of your success may be due to the fact that you employ proprietary techniques or have information that your competitors do not. Protecting this information is essential to your continued success.

Intellectual Property Forms

• Assignments of Software
• Confidentiality Agreement All Law Confidentiality Agreement All Law Confidentiality Agreement
• Technical RFP Request for Proposals

Intellectual Property Links

• American Intellectual Property Law Association Trademarks, patents, copyrights
• Legal Information Institute - Berne Convention For the protection of literary and artistic works
• Copyright Clearance Center Powerful resource, simple & cost effective, and unique solutions
• International Technology Law Association
• Legal Information Institute - Copyrights U.S. Code, rules, forms, appendices and other material
• U.S. Copyright Office - The Library of Congress News, general information, publications, announcements, copyright links, legislation
• Legal Information Institute - Code of Federal Regulations Chapter I I - Copyright Office, Library of Congress
• Copyright Website Practical and relevant copyright information
• Community of Science, Inc. Search AGRICOLA, Federal Register, GeoRef, MEDLINE, U.S. Patents, etc.
  

Intellectual Property Attorneys By State

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho

Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri

Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania

Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Puerto Rico

Featured Intellectual Property Attorneys

The firm of Peacock Myers, P.C., is the largest intellectual property law firm in New Mexico and handles all phases of intellectual property (national and international), including patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, licensing, lobbying, searches, and related litigation, as well as FDA and pharmaceutical law.

 

 

Maier & Maier PLLC is an Intellectual Property law firm based in Alexandria, Virginia. Intellectual Property Law most commonly covers areas of law, such as patents, trademarks, and copyrights. Maier & Maier, PLLC focuses their practice in the following areas: patent litigation, patent prosecution, infringement and validity analysis, patent searches, trademark litigation, preparing trademark applications.