Attorney Protection of Your Intellectual Property - Basic Facts About United States Intellectual Property

		Basic Facts About United States Intellectual Property

		Basically, there are four primary forms of intellectual property in the United States.
		Patents protect inventions Copyrights protect Expressions of ideas, not the underlying idea Trade Secrets protect Information and Ideas of Commercial value that are secret Trademarks protect the symbols by which products and services are know
		These are intangible rights, which are inexhaustible.

	What are patents?
		Inventions including: products, processes, compositions of matter, improvements and ornamental designs of useful articles
		Exclusively Federal Law because the Constitution specifically provides: "The congress shall have power … to promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries."
		They are limited in time to 20 years from application filing priority date (applications filed after 6/8/95) Note: design patent term is 14 years from grant. To be a patent, the invention must be:
		Novel (new) Of utility (useful) Not obvious
		Patent rights do not come into existence until registered. Prior to registration, inventions are protected by trade secret law.

	What are Copyrights?
		They are governed exclusively by Federal Law because they are constitutionally based.
		Copyright comes into existence as of the moment it is FIXED in a tangible medium of expression.
		The copyright protects the form of the expression, not the underlying ideas and concepts.
		Copyright only protects the material which is original to the author.
		To sue on the basis of copyright, it must be registered. You can obtain monetary relief and injunctions. Additionally, there are benefits to registering quickly in order to be able to claim statutory damages which can include penalties of up to $100,000 and imprisonment. Published works must be registered within 3 months of publication to obtain statutory damages.
		"Moral Rights" = rights to protect the honor and reputation of the author -- prevents distortion, mutilation and other modification of an author's work that would be prejudicial to his or her honor. This is NOT an economic right, it is the right of attribution, paternity and integrity.
		Currently in US only covers visual works, in foreign countries it has been extended to non-visual works.

	What are Trade Secrets?
		This is a very broad area of the law. It covers any formula, pattern, device or compilation of information used in business which gives the owner an opportunity to obtain an advantage over competitors who do not know or use it.
		Any ideas or information which are Secret and has Commercial Value
		Trade secrets arise under state law and are typically protected through contracts including confidentiality and nondisclosure agreements, licensing agreements, subcontractor and employee agreements.
		Duration is unlimited provided that they are kept secret.
		You must judiciously manage your secrets.
		Note that there is a federal criminal law Economic Espionage Act.

	What are Trademarks?
		Trademarks in the US predominately governed by Federal Law.
		Constitutional basis is the “Commerce Clause”
		To obtain a federal registration, the mark must be used in commerce.
		The term in the United States, and many countries around the world is 10 years from registration, and renewable for like terms.
		State trademarks exist as well and you usually obtain a state registration by registering with the Secretary of State. There is little investigation by the granting authority. Most states have 10 year terms and typically requires use within the state.

		For basic information about trademarks, click here.