Miami Trademark Registration

Trademark Attorney Services for Your Miami Business

Serving the Miami, FL area | 305-351-9182

Welcome to Gerben IP

We have been assisting entrepreneurs, established businesses and other lawyers with trademarks since 2008. We are very proud of the fact that our firm’s representation has resulted in the successful registration of more than 7,500 trademarks with the USPTO.

Protect your trademark
with the assistance of
a trademark attorney
for a flat fee of:

$1,500

(Plus Government Filing Fee)

Providing Trademark Services for Miami-based Businesses

Please note that while Gerben IP is not located in Florida, it can assist businesses from Florida in registering a federal trademark because it is a federal matter.

Gerben IP provides legal services for everyone from a small start-up to an international corporate powerhouse. Trademark attorney Josh Gerben started the firm in 2008 to help businesses register and protect their trademarks. The attorneys at Gerben IP have registered over 7,500 trademarks and are ready to assist you and your business with your unique trademark needs.

Gerben IP is based in Washington, DC but assists clients across the country, including from Miami. With competitive rates and individualized service, Gerben IP’s attorneys provide cost-conscious legal services and deliver quality results.


How many trademarks are filed each year by businesses in Miami, Florida?

Gerben IP collected the following data from the USPTO’s public database.

Year# of Trademarks Filed
20216796
20206447
20195292
20185153
20174739
20164539
20154428
20144093
Year# of Trademarks Filed
20133806
20123653
20113342
20102975
20092718
20082724
20072897
20062661

Why is trademark registration important for The Magic City’s business owners?

Successful Miami businesses know that trademark protection is one of the most important things businesses can do to build a successful company, as a company’s trademark will represent the company’s quality, ethos, and style. Whether you own a corporation downtown or a restaurant in Wynwood, protecting your trademarks can help you prevent unnecessary legal disputes and help create a strong, protectable brand for the future.

Let’s consider a consumer electronics company that sets up shop in Miami. The company creates a fashion-forward wearable fitness wristband that logs steps and physical activity. The company calls itself “Kinelectic” and calls its wristband the “Kintelectual.” Here, the company has two different trademarks to consider: (1) Kinelectric and (2) Kintelectual. The company’s founder, Len Smith, fails to do a trademark search and releases the product without registering the trademarks or checking to see who else might be using similar trademarks. He invests $10,000 into marketing and advertisement and an additional $50,000 into the custom design and packaging of his products.

It turns out that a Georgia company has been selling “smart” basketball sneakers using the name “Kentelectic” for several years throughout the United States. Suddenly, that company starts to see Len Smith’s trademark infringement advertising on Facebook and through Google and sends Len a cease-and-desist letter telling him to stop all use of the “Kinelectric” and “Kintelectual” trademarks. Because Len did not properly search the availability of his chosen brand names, Len will now likely be faced to rebranding completely and may be responsible for any damages that Len caused to the other company, such as lost sales because of consumer confusion.

Trademark law is in place to allow consumers to make informed decisions in the marketplace based on what they already know about specific brands. It also allows businesses to invest in the quality of their products, style, and customer service knowing that someone else will not legally be able to “piggy-back” on the company’s hard-work in branding its products. In order to gain that protection, every business owner from a retail store in Aventura to a club in South Beach needs to do a search to check the availability of their trademark and makes moves to register and protect it. Otherwise, business owners will not be able to invest in their brand and take full advantage of their hard-work and ingenuity.

The top 3 questions Miami businesses have about obtaining a trademark.

When should I apply for a trademark?

As soon as possible. You can apply to “reserve” a trademark for up the three years if you have a “bona fide” intent to use the trademark on specific products or services. This means that you can start to protect your trademark before you even begin using it. If you don’t make this filing, your trademark rights can only begin when you actually start selling your products or services, which could allow someone else to reserve the mark before you begin use.

Can I own my trademark registration in my name, personally?

Yes, but there are risks. If you own a trademark registration in your name, personally, then you can be personal responsible for any damage your use of the trademark causes others who may have used a similar trademark first. Your personal assets could be at stake. Always consult with an attorney before deciding ownership issues.

How is a trademark different from a copyright?

Trademark law protects brands and other words, phrases and almost anything that represents a single business. Copyright protects “creative” items, like books, videos, artwork and other creative endeavors. Sometimes, a picture can be protected under both copyright law and trademark law, if it’s a creative work that represents a business (like a creative logo). An attorney can help you determine the best way to protect your intellectual property.


Common misperceptions about trademarks heard around Miami, FL.

You can’t own a commonly-used word as a trademark.

If you use a commonly-used word in connection with goods or services that are not related to that word, it can be a trademark. Even a word like “What?” can be a trademark for, say, motor oil or nutritional supplements. However, a word like “Sold” could not likely be protected by a realtor, because it is commonly-used in that industry and would not act as a trademark.

Advertising campaigns are not trademark uses, so I don’t need to worry.

Anything that uses marketing slogans or business names can cause trademark issues. While it may not be practical to look at every aspect of every marketing campaign, an experienced trademark attorney can guide you through the most pressing issues.

My trademark is my personal name, so I do not need to register it with the USPTO.

Under trademark law, you are not automatically permitted to use your name as a trademark in the marketplace. If someone else has already established trademark rights in a similar name (think, Kim Kardashian) you may be barred from using your name as a trademark in commerce in certain industries.

I can’t afford to register a trademark.

Trademark protection should be high on your priority list and should be budgeted in your business plan. It is just too important not to take seriously. If you invest in developing your business and your name, you do not want all of that hard work to be for nothing. Gerben IP offers reasonable flat fee pricing that is affordable for even the smallest businesses.

A “Do-it-Yourself” legal website is just as effective as using an attorney, because filing a trademark registration is just filling out a form.

A trademark application requires dozens of legal decisions just to get the application filed. Everything from the ownership of the trademark to the scope of the goods and services to the availability of the mark will change the filing strategy. Once the application has been filed, then there are addition decisions that may need to be made. An experienced attorney can help you avoid common mistakes that could be fatal to your trademark registration.

15+
Years of Experience
10,000+
Trademark Searches
Completed
7,500+
Trademarks Federally
Registered
5
Customer Service

Testimonials from our Clients in Miami

Dale ArensonDale Arenson ★★★★★ Very knowledgeable staff and easy to work with.I highly recommend Josh Gerben and his firm.Kelly KashmerKelly Kashmer ★★★★★ I've been a client of Josh Gerben since 2016. He is extremely helpful and thorough. I'm grateful to have someone who manages my business trademark.Jackie LivesayJackie Livesay ★★★★★ Very efficient and nice people!David Przybylo (Sustained Effort)David Przybylo (Sustained Effort) ★★★★★ Very professional service. Trustworthy and Integrity driven. Excellent communication is always provided. Great to work with. Easy process to follow. I would highly recommend working with Josh Gerben and his staff. One of the best in the industryM BM B ★★★★★ Was referred to the Gerben Law firm after wasting time & $’s with a local FL firm. Benjamin Hanrahan took care of our Utility Patent in a most professional manner. Within 8 months achieved Patent approval results. We recommend them. Thank you!Michael BinderMichael Binder ★★★★★ Over 5 years ago we at Newland Machine Tool Group started our business relationships with Gerben Law firm when decided to register our trade name "Newland" in the US. Josh Gerben found an attempt to infringe our brand name. He suggested to litigate, we followed his legal advice. Due to great Josh's and his team job we were able to prevail and our brand name was successfully registered. Since then Josh gave his legal advise on multiple occasions, performed monitoring of our trademark to make sure there was no infringement and provided our trademark renewal. It's been a great pleasure working with the firm. All his associates and himself are highly professional people. The firm is very busy but you never have to wait for their response or actions. They can explain legal terms in a simple language; all their services have always been great and their prices are very reasonable. Running the business we have to deal with lawyers from time to time and it is usually a hassle. I would say Gerben law firm is not in this range, it is outstanding - they become your partner who you enjoy to deal with. Highly recommend them for your IP needs!Abigail CarpenterAbigail Carpenter ★★★★★ We have worked with Gerben on multiple Trademark filings and are very happy with their work. They communicate clearly, do a great job of explaining the process, and always keep us up to date on the status of our filings.Milan JaraMilan Jara ★★★★★ I have been using Josh and his team for all of our trademarks for years and I am pleased with the service. Thank youzuleyma Moraleszuleyma Morales ★★★★★ Excellent support and adviceWe are pleased to work with the firm of GerbenAndrew PayneAndrew Payne ★★★★★ We've entrusted Josh with our trademarks since we began our business ten years ago and couldn't be happier. Thank you.Mark Hill-CCMark Hill-CC ★★★★★ We have used the Gerben Law firm for many years for our trademarks. Their expertise and seamless process is what brought me and kept me. I will continue using them for all our future needs.MC Videos (M.C.Videos)MC Videos (M.C.Videos) ★★★★★ Gerben Law firm is the cats pajamas, these guys know their stuff..Always on the ball, and quick to answer any questions..Josh's videos are informative and a bit unintentionally hilarious..With his hard, core no nonsense, "Dragnet" demeanor.. the man loves his job, and you can feel it with every staccato hand gesture.. keep doing Gods work Josh, and keep them videos comin' 😂👌Dale SollarsDale Sollars ★★★★★ Josh and his team made getting my trademarks easy and quite fast. I doubt I could have had any better service. They were always ready to answer my questions and kept me informed throughout the process. Most importantly, they answer the phone when you call. Thank you very much. Dale Sollarsjs_loader
Gerben IP

Proudly assisting businesses
and individuals in the
Miami, Florida area.

305-351-9182

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