Protecting Your Product with Trademarks
Trademarks begin in common law and now have a statutory basis. Trademarks protect your brand and its goodwill from imitators and usurpers. Trademarks have four kinds: trademarks, servicemarks, certification marks, and collective marks. Commonly known trademarks protect the words or logo of physical things from a brand, company, or product. Servicemarks protect the words or logo of a brand, company, or individual that provides a service to others. Certification marks protect the logo or symbol of an authority that certifies various goods. Collective marks protect the logo, symbol, or name used by members of a defined group.
Trademarks generally require use of the trademark in commerce as upon packaging, labeling, website order pages, and brochures of service providers among other things. Trademarks may have registration or may not have registration. Trademarks may come from a state or from the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Obtaining a state trademark registration requires application to the proper agency, often the Secretary of State, while obtaining a federal trademark registration calls for application to the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office in Alexandria, Virginia. The Trademark Office has strict rules and regulations for the format and examination of trademark applications.
Before you begin your trademark application, we encourage you to assemble a sample of your trademark and a brief description of your product or line of business, Download Record of Trademark Packet to get started today. Questions? Call 636.527.9962 to learn more or begin your trademark application.