Protecting Trade Secrets is Good Business

History of Trade Secrets For many businesses, protecting trade secrets is important.  Trade secret laws protect secret business information against unauthorized use or disclosure by one who obtains it through improper means.  The protection of confidential business information has historically been protected.  Protecting trade secret information dates as far back as Roman times, when Roman Read more about Protecting Trade Secrets is Good Business[…]

Intersection between Copyright and Trade Secret Protection

When protecting computer code, your failure to properly protect the trade secret can result in a loss of IP rights. If you wish to protect a trade secret, the copyright office allows you to keep portions of the computer code a secre.

Trade Secret Protection

Trade Secret Protection

Trade Secret Protection allows a business to prevent unlawful disclosure or use of its proprietary information including its financial, business, scientific, technical, economic or engineering information methods and processes. Generally, to qualify the information must not be generally known and must be of value to the business.

Caution – Cease and Desist Letter

As the owner of intellectual property (a patent, copyright or trademark), you have invested significant time, energy and resources into protecting your patent, copyright or trademark.  What do you do if you find someone is violating your patent rights, for example?  Do you file a lawsuit immediately?  Do you contact the police?  Do you contact Read more about Caution – Cease and Desist Letter[…]

Dangers of Making Money From an Invention

So you have a great idea. An idea which will change the world.  Your idea makes the world a better place, improve everyone’s way of life while being profitable.  You create a prototype and prove it works.  The numbers show that your invention will make millions while costing very little.  A large company, one of Read more about Dangers of Making Money From an Invention[…]

Your Intellectual Property Questions Answered

As an Intellectual Property Law firm, we are constantly being asked about the types of intellectual property. Many people know that they want their intellectual property (ie., inventions, ideas, art, writing, etc.) protected, but they are unsure as to what type of intellectual property protection they need. The Intellectual Property Center is here to help. Read more about Your Intellectual Property Questions Answered[…]

Tweets Aren’t Trade Secrets

The explosive expansion of social media outlets such as Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn have given rise to numerous intellectual property issues, including the ownership and value of a “Friend,” “Like” or “Tweet.”  A recent case PhoneDog v. Noah Kravitz may address some of these issues.  In PhoneDog, a California Court is being asked to determine Read more about Tweets Aren’t Trade Secrets[…]

White House Recommends increasing the Criminal Penalties for Intellectual Property

The White House released a white paper recommending increasing the penalties for intellectual property crimes. The recommendations involve increasing rights and penalties “so as to more effectively address the substantial harm caused by intellectual property crimes.” Recommended changes include: Increase prison term for counterfeit drug distributors; Increase prison terms for theft of trade secrets; Increase Read more about White House Recommends increasing the Criminal Penalties for Intellectual Property[…]

Trademark Priority Rights

In the United States, trademark rights arise from use in commerce, regardless of whether or not the mark is registered. The first user of a mark generally takes priority over all subsequent users with respect to use of the mark in that market. The first user of a mark in commerce, labeled the senior user, Read more about Trademark Priority Rights[…]

Trademark Infringement Litigation

There are standards that must be met for admissibility of expert testimony in trademark infringement actions. Experts may have their methods challenged before they take the stand. Expert testimony may be excluded as speculative and unreliable if an expert’s methods are not based on sufficient facts or data, are not reliable, or are not applied Read more about Trademark Infringement Litigation[…]