Trademark Attorney Helping Clients in Fort Lauderdale

South Florida and Fort Lauderdale are full of fine people looking to thrive in business and other opportunities. When they transition into these arenas, an expert in the law surrounding trademarks and commercial litigation will be needed. Knowing which law firms can be trusted to help safeguard and flex your legal rights is paramount. For times like this, Fort Lauderdale, FL, and South Florida need Tucker Law.

Fort Lauderdale Trademark Lawyer

People in and around Fort Lauderdale want to know how trademark services work. Our local counsel representation can be trusted to give you the unadulterated facts. Here are some of the frequent questions we get about trademarks, how they are related to intellectual property, and how the law is related to both of them.  When you’re in or near Fort Lauderdale, Florida, you don’t have to graduate from law school or pass the Florida bar exam to know the basics about trademarks. Anyone can read about trademarks online these days. However, you’ll benefit from consulting with a registered trademark attorney about your situation.

The Definition of a Trademark

A trademark is a symbol, word, or phrase legally registered or established by use as representing a company or product. Trademarks, especially unregistered ones, are often stamped with a ™ symbol.

The Importance of a Trademark

Your trademark ensures that the exclusive rights to wield all brand-specific identifiers associated with your business legally are yours and yours alone. Once those rights are secure, anyone who is using those trademarked identifiers without your expressed, written, or verbal consent can be prosecuted in state and federal courts.    Trademarks give you protection, brand identity, market viability, and legitimization for your patent, brands, and services. These are the elements of a fortified brand. Your trademark attorney will ensure that the exclusive right to wield all brand-specific identifiers associated with your business legally is yours and yours alone.  Trademark law houses intellectual property within it. Any brand-associated IP you develop is legally supported when a trademark is registered. Trademark rights are designed to shelter your brand from opportunists seeking to exploit your business. When someone does cross the line, your trademark lawyers will use the law to fight off the threat.  A strong trademark is synonymous with a strong brand identity. People who want to come looking for you will be able to find you because trademark protection will ensure that you can develop your brand identity to an unmistakable point. Long-established brands know this and regard it as a trade secret. For a trademark attorney at our law firm, it’s no secret at all. The word is out.

Trademarking Your Intellectual Property

Intellectual property that signifies your brand, goods, or services can be trademarked. Here are the IP assets trademark services that can be trademarked:

• Business names
• Single color or a color combination
• Product names and nicknames
• Slogans 
• Scents
• Sounds
• Designs

To learn more about what you can and cannot trademark, contact a trademark lawyer. Though attorney-client privilege ensures confidentiality for legal work, if you aren’t ready to officially hire a lawyer from them you can ask that a non-disclosure agreement be part of your consultation. This way you can feel confident that your trade secrets are protected.

Trademark Length

Trademark registration eventually expires. Under trademark law, trademarks must be renewed to remain valid. Any trademark that isn’t renewed is considered “dead”.   Upon completion of your first trademark application, you get six years before expiry. Once you have the trademark registered, your attorneys handle renewal tasks. The first renewal must be filed between the 5th and 6th year. All future filings will be valid for ten years. All trademark applications from this point will be submitted between the 9th and 10th years of licensure.

Trademark Attorneys

Firstly, experienced trademark attorneys help you to preserve your time, energy, and money. A thoroughly vetted attorney will assist you with whatever trademark and legal services-related issues arise over time. Their intimate knowledge of intellectual property law and all things related is essential for safeguarding your business interests in any free-market economy.  Trademark lawyers will help you with paper pushing. Trademark registration can involve many tedious tasks. Those unfamiliar with the registration process could struggle to complete something that a trademark attorney could casually finish in a fraction of an afternoon. Seemingly complex issues for the average Joe or Jane will be easy for an attorney from an experienced team.  Trademark attorneys will have the skills to handle the entire registration process. This includes but isn’t limited to:

• Trademark registration services
• Licensing agreements
• Patent and trademark prosecution
• Submitting a trademark application
• Service mark applications

Lastly, your intellectual property attorney will take legal action against all counterfeiters,  bootleggers, or others who violate your brand. When startups and small businesses first emerge, they’re vulnerable to these assaults. The right trademark lawyers practicing law will be there to issue cease and desist letters, and if that doesn’t work, they’ll file suit against the assailants.

FAQ About Trademarks

Learning the importance of trademark and copyright law and how registering a trademark can help your business grow. Using trademarks can help build your brand, protect your IP, and make your business stand out amongst consumers. Read on for more information about Trademarks or contact an experienced trademark attorney at Tucker Law right away.

How Do I Register a Federal Trademark?

To obtain a federally registered trademark, you must submit a trademark application to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO. The trademark application will contain information about the applicant, the desired trademark, and the nature of the goods/services to be protected under the trademark.

What Does The USPTO Do?

The USPTO examining attorney will evaluate the distinctiveness of your mark vis-a-vis the goods/services. This process determines whether or not the trademark is sufficiently distinct and eligible for trademark protection.  They then search the USPTO database to see if any trademarks are too similar to the applicant’s, if so this will result in a conflict.  When the examining attorney approves your application, it will proceed to the Official Gazette for a 30-day period of “publication” upon which any third party with a legitimate claim against the filing can submit an “opposition” to the application. If no oppositions get submitted, the applicant’s trademark application will be cleared for final registration.

Do I Need to Sell Something to Obtain Trademark Rights?

If the aspiring owner of a trademark is not selling anything in conjunction with the trademark clearance clever name or slogan, the owner does not have a trademark. To obtain trademark protection, you must have made several sales of the product/service under the banner of registering the said trademark.

What Is the Difference Between A Trademark and A Patent?

Patents are time-sensitive government-issued licenses that confer rights or a title, typically concerning exclusive rights to sell, make, or use some product or invention. A trademark is a symbol, word, or word/words legally registered or established by use as representing a company or product.

What Should I Know Before Selecting a Trademark?

Tucker Law recommends selecting your new trademark very carefully. The more unique your mark is, and the less descriptive it is of your product or service, by practice law the higher the level of protection afforded. It’s also important to not select a trademark that is substantially similar to another person’s existing trademark.

How Do I Protect My U.S. Trademark?

You can register your trademark with the federal trademark office when your trademark is being used in interstate or foreign commerce. If your trademark is used only within one state, then you can register your trademark with the appropriate government office in that state.  You can also enforce trademark rights by challenging other parties who infringe or dilute your trademarks. You can apply the symbol ® to your trademark once it is registered federally. Some trademarks use the symbol TM if it is not registered federally. If your business has neglected to protect its trademarks, consider sitting down with Tucker Law for a free consultation right away.

What Is The Tucker Law Advantage?

Tucker Law knows trademarks, patents, copyrights, and trade secrets. This is his job, and he’s good at it. His professional expertise has been developed through countless hours of legal proceedings, trademark applications, settlement negotiations, trademark law, trademark clearance searches, and more.  Let us help you shoulder the load of all of the tedious tasks associated with intellectual property law and trademark law. We’ll handle all of the paperwork deadlines and details and submission guidelines associated with your trademark needs.