Trademark Attorney Services for Your Atlanta Business

The top 5 questions Atlanta businesses have about obtaining a trademark.

What is a trademark?

Trademark is typically a word or a logo, but it can be anything that uniquely represents your business, including product shapes, sounds, store layout, color schemes, even smells.

Is it necessary to hire a trademark attorney?

While hiring a trademark attorney is not required, seeking assistance from an experienced trademark professional can help the process run quicker, cheaper, and with less complications. It makes sense that many entrepreneurs want to handle the trademark search and registration process themselves, especially when funds are limited at the beginning of a new business or venture. However, this can end up costing you more in the long run, both financially and in time. In the worst-case scenario, you may invest a lot of money in your brand only receive a cease-and-desist letter followed up by costly litigation. At the very least, Gerben IP has seen time and time again individuals and businesses over the years who end up spending more money to have their trademark applications corrected and re-filed. By consulting with a trademark attorney from the very beginning, you can rest assured that things will be taken care of efficiently and properly.

When should I begin the process of registering a trademark?

You can register a trademark as soon as you are in the planning stages and can reserve rights for up to three years while you prepare to use the trademark. Gerben IP recommends starting the process as soon as possible after you’ve created the mark. The first step is a comprehensive search, which will uncover many of the existing marks that may interfere with your ability to register or use your trademark. If the search results come back clear, then Gerben IP will draft the application and follow-up with the U.S. government.

Do I have a higher chance of approval if I use a trademark attorney?

According to a recent study, yes. An experience trademark attorney has the expertise to guide you throughout the process without experiencing common pit-falls and mistakes. This means that your application will be filled out correctly and quickly, speeding up the process. A study by the University of North Carolina found that trademark applications submitted with the assistance of an attorney are actually 50% more likely to be approved by the United State Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

How does having a federal trademark registration protect me?

A federal trademark registration is a powerful tool in protecting your trademark. A federal trademark registration is proof that the United States government has reviewed your trademark and found that it is unique and distinct enough for your products and services to be recognized nationwide. It will prevent anyone after you from registering a similar mark for similar goods and services and it prevents anyone from another part of the country from claiming they “never heard of you” when selecting their trademark, giving you the ability to more easily stop them from using a confusingly similar trademark.

Common misperceptions about trademarks heard around Atlanta, GA.

The terms trademark, copyright, and patent all have the same meaning.

A trademark, copyright and patent are completely different forms of intellectual property and protect completely different things. A trademark is most commonly a name, logo, or slogan used on a product or with a service to uniquely identify the producer of that product or service. A copyright protects creative works of authorship, including things like books, t-shirt designs, etc. A patent protects a unique invention (or new process to create something.) Knowing the difference is important and a Gerben IP attorney can help you decide how to protect your IP.

I registered my trademark with the State of Georgia’s trademark registry, I do not need to do anything further.

Registering a trademark with the State of Georgia cannot hurt, but it does not give you the protection of a federal trademark registration. Obtaining a federal trademark registration is much more difficult than a state registration.. Moreover, if another company has already registered a federal trademark, or, acquired certain common law rights, a registration with the State of Georgia will not give you the right to use the name. The federal or common law rights may pre-empt any state registration you obtain.

I obtained a federal trademark registration, so I should be entitled to the domain name as well.

A domain name is important, but it is possible that two businesses in different industries can be using the same trademark and both have legitimate rights in a domain name. For example, Delta® airlines and Delta® faucets may both want to use “www.delta.com,” but only one will be able to (whoever registered it first or paid for it.) Unless someone is overtly acting in bad-faith to extort you for money or trying to confuse your customers, it can be very hard to take a domain-name from someone else. However, Gerben IP can help you develop a strategy for protecting your trademarks and potentially gaining control over a domain-name using your protected trademark.

I applied to protect my logo. That is enough to fully protect me.

You have the option of filing for a “word mark” or a “design mark” at the USPTO. A word mark protects the “word” itself in any design or font. A design mark protects the design that is submitted and any words as they appear in that design. This means someone else could register the same word using a very different design and you would potentially be forced to co-exist with that person, which weakens your trademark. Gerben IP recommends filing for a word mark whenever possible, with a second filing for a unique logo, where appropriate.