Types of Intellectual Property Protection Available
PATENTS / INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS / PRODUCT CONFIGURATION TRADEMARKS / COPYRIGHTS / VESSEL HULL DESIGN / MASK WORKS / TRADE SECRETS
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY PROCUREMENT
Cost-Conscious Intellectual Property Representation
Cost-Conscious Intellectual Property RepresentationSecuring patents, trademarks and copyrights is sometimes a very involved procedure, which may require the help of a thorough and highly skilled attorney. Robert J. Hess is such an attorney. He can search other patent or trademark submissions and represent you during the domestic patent application process and assist with the foreign patent application process. He can evaluate product designs and knock-offs and propose a design-around. He can search through logos, trademarks, service marks, collective marks, certification marks and trade names.
If you are seeking international protection for your intellectual property, he will work hard on your behalf to secure international protection, while making sure all international treaties are being followed. He will do everything he can to keep the process as cost-efficient as possible.
If you are seeking patent protection in the United States for an invention covered by a WIPO international patent application under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), you may confer with patent attorney Robert J. Hess to help decide whether it is preferable to enter the national phase according to the PCT treaty, file a continuation patent application that claims priority from the WIPO international patent application or pursue a continuation-in-part patent application.
Robert J. Hess can devise a strategy in an effort to optimize protection for your innovation, which may be protectable by patent (utility, design, plant), industrial design, product configuration trademark, copyright, mask work (semiconductor chip protection) or trade secrets.
Indeed, there are different forms of protection for innovations. As a registered patent attorney, Robert J. Hess has represented clients before the US Patent and Trademark Office and before the US Copyright Office. Internationally, he has represented clients who seek international patent protection through the Patent Cooperation Treaty, or international industrial design registration through the Hague Agreement or international trademark protection under the Madrid Protocol. Further, he has worked in cooperation with foreign patent and trademark agents to protect client innovations both within the United States and abroad.
Patents – a form of protection under federal laws for inventors of new, useful and non-obvious innovations. Typically, the structure, function, operation and assembly of an invention may be protected under a utility patent, the ornamental design may be protected under a design patent, and an asexually reproduced variety of plant may be protected under a plant patent. Protection is not automatic; in general, protection must be sought through a filing within one year from the date the invention is disclosed in a non-confidential manner.
Marks – a form of protection under federal and state laws based upon the commercial use of words or logos, which symbolize the goodwill of a business, in association with goods and services of the business. Protection is automatic to the extent of market penetration, but requires a filing for federal or state protection.
Copyrights – a form of protection under federal laws for the authors of “original works of authorship, including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works.” This protection is available to both published and unpublished works in the U.S., regardless of the nationality or domicile of the author. Copyright protection exists from the time the work is created in a fixed, tangible form of expression. The copyright in the work of authorship immediately becomes the property of the author who created the work. A filing is required to enforce the copyright against others.
Industrial Designs – a form of protection available outside the United States for the ornamental or aesthetic aspect of an article may be protected through the Hague Agreement and may consist of three-dimensional features, such as the shape of an article, or two-dimensional features, such as patterns, lines or color.
Trade Secrets – a form of protection under state laws that encompasses a formula, practice, process, design, instrument, pattern, commercial method, or compilation of information not generally known or reasonably ascertainable by others by which a business can obtain an economic advantage over competitors or customers. Legal protections include non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), and work-for-hire and non-compete clauses.
Protect Your Innovation
Litigation over intellectual property can be expensive and time-consuming. Attorney Robert J. Hess works with inventors to help them minimize the risk of facing future problems from any existing patents or trademarks. Should such a problem arise, there may be cost-effective alternatives to litigation that may be pursued.
If there is an existing trademark similar to the name you would like for your product, attorney Robert J. Hess can help you make the changes necessary to keep a similar name yet minimize the risk of running afoul of existing trademarks. If you are being accused of infringing an existing copyright, he can investigate that and identify viable defenses should they exist.
CONTACT OUR FIRM’S CARY INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY APPLICATION LAWYER
Attorney Robert J. Hess works closely with his clients, skillfully guiding them through the legal process as they seek protection for their intellectual property. He provides them with a realistic assessment of where they stand, their chances for success and recommendations to improve their situations. Attorney Robert J. Hess is also available to work with clients in identifying state and federal funding opportunities for technologies that are potentially patentable.