Intellectual Property Law Monthly Update — February 2024
Darin Klemchuk
Helping Mid-Market Companies Leverage Their Intellectual Property | IP Litigator | IP Mediator | Performance Coach
This is a recap of the February 2024 posts from our Ideate blog featuring trending intellectual property law topics.
A trademark serves to identify a product or service by a word, phrase, and/or design. A registration of a trademark is dependent on use or intended use of the mark in commerce. It is a good practice for businesses to be well educated on how the trademark process works and how rights in trademarks arise at common law.
A common mistake businesses tend to make is not securing a more distinctive business name or brand name. Another common mistake made by businesses is failing to perform a proper trademark search prior to their selection of a business or brand name. If businesses avoid the most common mistakes made in this process, it will help create a better foundation for that business or brand.
Non-Practicing Entities, commonly known as patent trolls, tend to send letters to targets whom they believe may have infringed on a patent or who may be more susceptible to pay money to avoid litigation. While simply waiting until a lawsuit is filed could be a risk, it might help to hire an attorney to perform a comprehensive analysis and opinion. An early preliminary infringement analysis tends to be more cost efficient and best move.
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The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) requires non-exempt companies to disclose beneficial owner information. Reporting is required for many entities, including corporations, LLCs, and foreign entities operating in the US. It is important for In-house counsel to assess their company’s structure for reporting obligations and establish procedures to monitor and update reports as necessary.
The lawsuit between Jack Daniel’s and VIP Products LLC has been ongoing since 2014, which emphasizes the lengthiness of trademark litigation. The case has been remanded back to trial court after the Supreme Court’s opinion decided the Rogers test does not apply if the challenged mark is being used as a trademark. It is important to keep in mind that there are risks when responding too aggressively to a demand letter when the opponent is not smaller than you.
Darin M. Klemchuk focuses his practice on IP and commercial litigation, IP enforcement programs, and strategies to block competitors through IP law. You can find more information about him at his firm’s bio.
Klemchuk PLLC is a leading intellectual property law firm focusing on litigation, anti-counterfeiting, trademarks, patents, and business law. We help clients protect innovation and increase market share through investments in IP. Find out more about our IP lawyers.