oIl Protection - Amazon S32/IPGuide.p… · So do you really want to expose all your ideas, your...

© 2013 Vujà Dé Law, PLC | All contents are intended for educational and informational purposes only.

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oIl Protection™ PROTECTING YOUR IP PORTFOLIO.

“Intellectual property is the oil of the 21 century.

Look at the richest men a hundred years ago; they all made their money extracting natural resources or moving them around. All today’s richest men have made their money out of intellectual property.” Mark Getty of Getty Images, "Blood and Oil," The Economist (March 4, 2000), p. 68


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YOU THINK YOU NEED IDEA PROTECTION

YOUR ™ ® © EDUCATION .................................................................................................................... 4 WORST CASE SCENARIO | YOU’VE BEEN HIJACKED ........................................................................................... 4 PREVENTION | 20/20 HINDSIGHT ........................................................................................................................ 5 Step 1 | Recognize that your ideas have value. ........................................................................................ 5 Step 2 | Talk to an attorney that knows, understands, & practices IP law .................................. 6 Step 3 | Protect your value (aka ideas, brand, etc.) ............................................................................... 7 Step 4 | Enforcement (aka taking action when you see people stealing from you) ................. 8

21ST CENTURY OIL | INGREDIENTS ........................................................................................................................ 8 Trademarks ™ ® ................................................................................................................................................... 8 Copyrights © ........................................................................................................................................................... 9 Patents ....................................................................................................................................................................... 9 Comparison Chart .............................................................................................................................................. 10

START HERE .......................................................................................................................................... 11 WHAT DO YOU NEED TO PROTECT? ..................................................................................................................... 11

NAMING YOUR BRAND ...................................................................................................................... 12 YOUR BRAND ........................................................................................................................................................... 12 A NAME LIKE NO OTHER NAME ......................................................................................................................... 13 Brainstorming ..................................................................................................................................................... 13 Core Document | Naming Your Business ................................................................................................ 14 Core Document |Top 10 Names .................................................................................................................. 16 Core Document | Target Name List ........................................................................................................... 16

VETTING THE NAME | SOCIAL | LEGAL | PRACTICAL ....................................................................................... 17 Name Tracker ...................................................................................................................................................... 17 Help! I can’t find a name! ............................................................................................................................... 17 Skinning the Cat ................................................................................................................................................. 18 Examine other domain extensions. ............................................................................................................ 18 Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious .............................................................................................................. 18

OWNERSHIP .......................................................................................................................................... 18 ™ REGISTRATION ................................................................................................................................ 19 RESOURCES .............................................................................................................................................................. 19 United States Patent & Trademark Office | website ........................................................................... 19

PROTECT YOURSELF TODAY | DIY STEPS ........................................................................................................... 19 PROTECT YOURSELF FUTURE | FORMAL REGISTRATION ................................................................................ 19

© REGISTRATION ................................................................................................................................ 21 RESOURCES FOR YOU ............................................................................................................................................. 21 United States Copyright Office | click here ............................................................................................. 21 Copyright Basics | click here ....................................................................................................................... 21 The 1976 Copyright Act | click here ........................................................................................................... 21 Mandatory Deposits of © Works | click here ......................................................................................... 21

WHAT EXACTLY DOES A COPYRIGHT © COVER? ............................................................................................... 21 WHAT A COPYRIGHT © IS NOT GOING TO COVER ............................................................................................. 21 PUBLISHING IS NO LONGER A REQUIREMENT. ................................................................................................... 22 YOU DON’T GET A DICTATORSHIP OVER YOUR © .............................................................................................. 22


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IMMEDIATE PROTECTION ...................................................................................................................................... 23 I WANT A COPYRIGHT ©. ....................................................................................................................................... 23 AND THIS IS HOW YOU NEED TO IDENTIFY YOUR AUTHORSHIP ..................................................................... 23 IS MY WORK PROTECTED FOREVER? ................................................................................................................... 23 DO I GET A BENEFIT FROM REGISTERING MY COPYRIGHT? ........................................................................ 23 OK, OK, I DEFINITELY WANT TO GET MY © REGISTERED. HOW DO I DO IT? ............................................... 24 Searching existing copyrights first ............................................................................................................. 24 Filing an application ........................................................................................................................................ 24

YOU MAY BE LEGALLY REQUIRED TO DEPOSIT YOUR © WORK ...................................................................... 25 Categories that have different deposit requirements. ....................................................................... 25

PATENT REGISTRATION ................................................................................................................... 26 HOW TO GET A PATENT | CLICK HERE ................................................................................................................. 26 FINDING AN ATTORNEY THAT CAN DO PATENTS | CLICK HERE ...................................................................... 26 HOW PATENT LAWS ARE CHANGING | CLICK HERE ........................................................................................... 26 WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT PATENTS | CLICK HERE ........................................................................... 26

ENFORCEMENT | YOUR POLICE FORCE ........................................................................................ 27 DIY POLICING ......................................................................................................................................................... 27 PAID POLICING ........................................................................................................................................................ 27 ENFORCEMENT GAME PLAN ................................................................................................................................. 27 Core Document | Enforcement Protocol .................................................................................................. 27

TRADEMARK ENFORCEMENT BUNDLE ............................................................................................................... 28 HOW TO HIRE LEGAL WORK | BLOG POST ................................................................................. 28 ONLINE DIY FORM CENTERS ............................................................................................................................... 28 My love/hate relationship with form centers ........................................................................................ 28

RELATIONSHIP BASED ATTORNEY | VUJÀ DÉ LAW ......................................................................................... 29 Benefits ................................................................................................................................................................... 29 A good fit for . . . .................................................................................................................................................. 30 A really bad fit for . . . ....................................................................................................................................... 30

QUESTIONS | ANSWERS | CONCERNS ............................................................................................ 30 Why can’t I just use LegalZoom®? ............................................................................................................. 30 Is it worth spending money to work with an attorney v. the DIY approach? .......................... 30 What does it mean “not a law firm”, “not giving legal advice”? .................................................... 31 I am different. Vujà Dé Law is different. .................................................................................................. 31 What should you do? ........................................................................................................................................ 32

DEFINITIONS ......................................................................................................................................... 33 AUTHOR .................................................................................................................................................................... 33 COPYRIGHT CLAIMANT .......................................................................................................................................... 33 COPYRIGHT OWNER ............................................................................................................................................... 33 EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS OWNER .................................................................................................................................. 33 PUBLISH ................................................................................................................................................................... 33 REGISTRATION ........................................................................................................................................................ 33 WORKS ..................................................................................................................................................................... 33


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YOUR ™ ® © EDUCATION Educated you make the best decisions for your business, your family, and yourself, at the right time. You didn’t go to law school and you don’t need to; but without knowing how the law intersects your business you could get killed in the crosshairs. You’ve got valuable dollars all locked up in your brain. Every time you create something with that brain of yours you are creating intellectual property, the oil of the 21st century according to Mark Getty. So do you really want to expose all your ideas, your genius, your time, your money, and you to the world without knowing exactly how to protect all that? No you don’t! Knowing how the law works is powerful. Unfortunately the business model for lawyers and law firms for the past who knows how many years is to hoard the information. If they don’t tell you how it works in ways you can understand it, then you have to pay them. It’s how they make money and it’s still the only way most attorneys and law firms know how to make money. I’m a mom, a business owner, and an attorney – in that order. That means that I’m most focused on helping others learn how to do things and teaching (just like I do with my son). Then I make sure that my business is helping others do business. And finally I apply my area of expertise, the law, to the situation. I don’t subscribe to the traditional business model of law firms or lawyers. I like the open source world we live in and want to do my best to contribute to it. You are holding in your hands the legal education you need to learn and understand how intellectual property protection fits into your business and your personal legal planning. You are going to work through each section and develop the roadmap that gets you to brand protection. Let’s face it we all want our ideas respected unfortunately there are too many people and businesses out there in the world that want a short cut to success and they have no problem hijacking your work.

WORST CASE SCENARIO | YOU’VE BEEN HIJACKED If you’re in business you need to know exactly what your worst case scenario is. Here’s just a few that happen all the time:

You were plugging along working on your latest idea when a friend shoots you a message telling you to go check out a Web site. You do. And ARRGGGH!!! Someone just lifted and copied your entire site. You are so mad you could spit nails! You want someone to pay. You worked so hard to create it. You researched the designer and developer you wanted and found a way to pay to create a store front to display your creative genius to the world. What are you going to do? What can you do?

You’re sitting on the couch watching television when all of a sudden an infomercial

comes onto the screen advertising your product. Your product! What? You’ve been selling this product in local stores for the last 5 years. You knew it was a great product and had been working hard trying to raise the capital to bring it to market and now here it is right in front of your face!!! What are you going to do? What can you do?


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You attend a local chamber of commerce meeting and meet a fellow business owner.

You engage in conversation and realize you have much in common – including your business name when she hands you her business card! What? You spent hours coming up with your company name and even more money putting it on your advertising materials. And now there are 2 companies in the same town with the same name. Your gut says she needs to change her name; but maybe she had it first. What are you going to do? What can you do?

These are only 3 of a billion worst-case scenarios that happen when ideas are let loose into the world. Just recently a fellow creative realized first hand the nightmare and personal violation that happens when someone rips off your idea. Around the World in 80 Jobs was Turner Barr’s creation. Adecco, a large employment company, launched a jobs competition for young people titled “Around the World in 80 Jobs.” Coincidence? Nope! You can read more here if you missed this viral explosion surrounding this brand. Turner’s world was turned upside down and a crazy viral legal battle started. And the worst part of this whole story (which happens to millions of people) is that Turner’s experience could’ve been prevented had he realized his value and taken steps to protecting himself and his creative genius. Another recent alleged case of infringement that has gone viral is Lisa Codgon writing about Cody Foster Co. infringing on her copyright work. This one is a bit of a sticky-wicket at the moment because there are serious questions as to whether Codgon’s work is original (within the definition of the law) and whether it was registered or not. As you will see in the copyright section below those are key questions. But most copyright and trademark cases could be handled with minimal cost and involvement by the courts and attorneys. By the time we read about it on the internet, then you are already looking at high stress and costly situations. Let’s start by looking at what SHOULD’VE BEEN DONE.

PREVENTION | 20/20 HINDSIGHT

STEP 1 | RECOGNIZE THAT YOUR IDEAS HAVE VALUE. Turner should’ve recognized that his “Around The World In 80 Jobs” had value. He developed the concept, built the blog, paid for hosting, and poured all of himself and his resources into it. If he had been working for a company, he would’ve known there was value (or at least his employer would’ve). When you work for yourself you often forget that it is what you are creating that is worth the money – long before anyone pays you for it.

• How long have you been working on your ideas? Months? Years? • How much money have you already invested? • Why are you spending your time and money on this silly idea?

Why?


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You believe in yourself and the business, brand, or product that you are creating. You know that you’ve got something good. And you do. Running a business means really thinking like a business owner and business owners know their value. As a business owner, your job becomes showing others’ your value and then getting them to pay you for your product or service. But your idea has value the instant it is created. Don’t wait until someone steals from you because it might be too late, or it’s going to end up costing you more time, more stress, and more money. When I talk with business owners that create their businesses most cannot put a value on their ideas. I have them do this exercise – Hire your position.

1. What are you willing to pay to have someone create ideas for you? 2. How indispensible would that person be to your company?

STEP 2 | TALK TO AN ATTORNEY THAT KNOWS, UNDERSTANDS, & PRACTICES IP

LAW i Turner should’ve found an attorney. I know you probably would rather have teeth pulled without drugs than think about having to hire an attorney. But you know what not all attorneys are “attorneys.” I’m an attorney that happens to not like very many attorneys because instead of taking their legal expertise and truly helping people, they manipulate and burn them. That’s not right. There are amazing attorneys out there. You just need to find the one that believes in your business and understands what you need in order to make that business a success. You also want someone that understands you are not in isolation with your business – it impacts your entire family. Business owners and creatives are so busy making the business run that legal gets pushed right out the door. Find the attorney that you want on speed dial before an emergency. You want an attorney that you’re excited to call anytime you’re developing a new product. Who else is going to be excited for you (provided you chose wisely) and make sure that you’re protected? Nobody. Should you hire and or talk with an attorney? I’ve got a quick quiz for you.

Define a trademark (from memory). Define a copyright (from memory). Where are trademarks registered? When does a copyright receive protection? How do you register a copyright? What constitutes an “original” work? Do you have legal standing without registration?

If you can’t answer those questions from memory and correctly, then you probably shouldn’t attempt to handle your business’ intellectual property. Remember what Mark Getty said:


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You provide value and want to sell that value to others. Attorneys know the rulebook that governs the value you are placing into the marketplace. They are simply selling their legal knowledge. The important part is finding an attorney that doesn’t subscribe to the old hoarding of information business model. Confused about how to choose and hire an attorney? Read here for more information. Yes, you can DIY your trademark or copyright applications but why?

It’s probably a waste of your time. You don’t know the law. You may need to write a legal brief. How much is it going to cost you?

For less than $2,000 you can hire an expert (legal fees + USPTO fees) and know that your business’ value is being handed.

STEP 3 | PROTECT YOUR VALUE (AKA IDEAS, BRAND, ETC.) Turner should’ve registered his brand. If he had the Adecco would have been on statutoryii notice. And Adecco’s choices would’ve been

Choose a different contest theme. This would’ve meant that Turner’s idea would’ve remained his and he wouldn’t have had to fight them, or lose sleep, or be stressed out and mad because Adecco used his idea.

Buy the idea. This would’ve meant that Turner would’ve made money based on his creative genius. He came up with an idea that had value – Adecco lifted the whole darn thing. They wouldn’t have used it if it wasn’t good for them.

License the idea. This would’ve meant that Turner would again be paid for his creative genius. See how talking and working with attorney is a good thing. You invest in your business and your business can make you money – isn’t that what you want it to do?

“Intellectual property is the oil of the 21 century. Look at the richest men a hundred years ago; they all made their money extracting natural resources or moving them around. All today’s richest men have made their money out of intellectual property.” Mark Getty of Getty Images, "Blood and Oil," The Economist (March 4, 2000), p. 68


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Lisa should’ve registered her works and given acknowledgement to the photographers whose work closely resembles her work. If she had then Cody Foster would’ve been on statutory notice and everyone’s legal bills and time would be far less than they will be.

Secure the rights to the photographs or make sure to acknowledge where the inspiration came from.

Cody Foster could’ve contacted Lisa and requested to license her work.

These are the exact same options you would have against an infringer, provided that you have the law on your side.

STEP 4 | ENFORCEMENT (AKA TAKING ACTION WHEN YOU SEE PEOPLE STEALING

FROM YOU) Registration gets your protection. But protection with out enforcement is stupid. After Turner protected his “Around the World in 80 Jobs” he should’ve enforced it. After you’ve taken steps to protect your business’ IP value then you have to police it. A quick and easy way is to set up Google alerts for any words or phrases that are part of your IP portfolio. Google will let you know quickly and for FREE. If you find out that someone is stealing from you, you need to stop it. This is another reason to work with an attorney. He or she will help you set up your action plan BEFORE the infringement or stealing happens. You want to know exactly what your enforcement strategy is before it happens.

21ST CENTURY OIL | INGREDIENTS Now is a good time to distinguish the different pieces of what makes up an Intellectual Property PORTFOLIO. Your business may use a combination of any of these pieces at any given time. How often are you really creating new “oil”? All the stinking time! Any time you come up with a new slogan, or name for a product, you have likely just created an important business asset.

This “oil” that Mark Getty is talking about is made up of 3 ingredients:

TRADEMARKS ™ ® Trademarks are business and branding related. A trademark is a word, letter, symbol, number, or combination of those that identifies the source of the good or service. This is what we all use routinely to determine what brands of goods and services we want to purchase or stay away from.

“Intellectual property is the oil of the 21 century. Look at the richest men a hundred years ago; they all made their money extracting natural resources or moving them around. All today’s richest men have made their money out of intellectual property.” Mark Getty of Getty Images, "Blood and Oil," The Economist (March 4, 2000), p. 68


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The definition given by the USPTO (United States Patent & Trademark Office) is that a trademark is a word, phrase, symbol, and/or design that identifies and distinguishes the source of the goods of one party from those of othersiii.

COPYRIGHTS © Exactly what a © covers Copyrights are more entertainment related and are handled by the US Copyright office, not the USTPO. A copyright © is a form of legal protection for the authors of “original works of authorship,” in these categories:

Literaryiv Musical & any accompanying words Dramatic & any accompanying music (see above) Pantomimes and choreographic Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural Motion pictures and other audiovisual Sound recordings Architectural

PATENTS Patents are technical and mechanical in nature. They protect inventions that are new, useful, and non-obvious. A patent is a limited duration property right relating to an invention, granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office in exchange for public disclosure of the invention.


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COMPARISON CHART TRADEMARKS COPYRIGHTS PATENTS What it all boils down to. Business and branding

related – the logos and taglines we all identify with the source of the good or service.

Entertainment related – what we might see on TV, radio, online, etc. Telling us about the invention and the company that made it.

Technical and mechanically related – the inventions.

What is it used on? Goods Covering words, names, symbols, and logos that are typically on the product or packaging.

Original works of authorship (literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and other creative forms.)

There are 3 kinds of patents: utility, design, and plant. There are different rules for each but all give you the right to stop (exclude) others from making, using, offering for sale, importing, or selling your invention in the United States.

What does it protect? Titles, names, short phrases, slogans, familiar symbols or designs, slight variations of typographic, lettering, or coloring.

Books, plays, Broadway shows, dance styles, music, pictures, graphics, sounds, architecture, maps, etc.

Utility patents protect any new and useful product, combination of products, or improvements. Design patents protect the inventor of a new, original, and ornamental design for an article of manufacture. Plant patents protect the person who invents or discovers and asexually reproduces any distinct and new variety of plant.

When would I use this? When you want to protect your company name, your newly designed name, your logo, or catchphrase.

When you want to protect your painting, novel, or special choreographed yoga routine.

When you’ve invented something that falls into one of these categories.


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START HERE What do you want to protect? You have to know what your end game or destination is before you start moving forward.

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO PROTECT? Please list everything you think you want protected.

1. Sample: I wrote a book and I want to publish it on Kindle but make sure that it is protected.

2. _______________________________________________________________________

3. _______________________________________________________________________

4. _______________________________________________________________________

5. _______________________________________________________________________

6. _______________________________________________________________________

7. _______________________________________________________________________

8. _______________________________________________________________________

I would love to learn about your business and the work you are creating. Readers of this guide receive a complimentary COFFEE CHAT session with me. Click here to book a COFFEE CHAT session and learn how to keep your creativity legally safe. Up next . . . Naming Your Brand. Now if you are just starting your business and thinking about names, you really need to go through the next exercise before you do anything else. I say this because so many businesses spend so much time coming up with their “brand” and then only months or years later actually talk to an attorney and then find out that they have to scrap everything they’ve built. I don’t want that to happen to you.

ATTORNEY ON YOUR TEAM: You may have overlap between patent, trademark, and copyright protection. Give yourself a leg up and find an attorney that you want on your team. Then call them and tell them what you have created or are creating. Their job is to make your life easy and keep all your blood, sweat, and tears protected.


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NAMING YOUR BRAND Let’s revisit one of the worst-case scenarios from above: Naming your company, your idea, your slogan, etc. is really the beginning of putting your ownership stamp on your intellectual property; but what if someone else has already claimed ownership? If you use someone else’s name, idea, slogan, etc. then you are the infringer and they have every right to come after you – even if you made an innocent mistake. Later on you’ll read about STATUTORY notice and damages – let’s just say you’ll be paying money to someone else even for innocent mistakes, if they’ve acted responsibly and protected their intellectual property. I’m going to help you make sure that you don’t end up in that situation. Above all else, you have to have your eyes wide open when you are naming your business. You have to address the socialv, legal, and practical levels simultaneously. Leaving one out of the game will cost you time and money and give you a series of sleepless nights and migraines.

YOUR BRAND You are a brand living in a branded world. You have to address branding or you risk not being found, being forgotten, and ultimately leaving money on the table. You know branding is important. And many of you spent hours and hours and hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars coming up with these amazing BRANDED ideas. But you’ll lose all that time and money, and potentially pay lots more, if you steal someone else’s brand. Now we all know about headline brands: Nike, Apple, Pottery Barn, The Gap, and wouldn’t dream about naming our companies after them but what about the millions of other brands out there in the world? Your “brand”vi is made up of various pieces. Each one has a different level of influence depending on your ideal customer/purchaservii. And how you protect your “brand” is handled differently depending on whether you are trying to protect a:

Name | Unique or Common

Logo | Simple, Complex, None

Typography | Simple, Complex, Traditional, Mix, Contemporary

Visual Design | Black & White, Colorful, Monochromatic

You attend a local chamber of commerce meeting and meet a fellow business owner. You engage in conversation and realize you have much in common – including your business name when she hands you her business card! What? You spent hours coming up with your company name and even more money putting it on your advertising materials. And now there are 2 companies in the same town with the same name. Your gut says she needs to change her name; but maybe she had it first.


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A NAME LIKE NO OTHER NAME Your goal is to find your own “Nike”, “Apple”, “Microsoft”, “Pottery Barn.” Your end goal is name, product, or service recognition in the marketplace. You want your customers to know when they see or hear your brand that they know it is you and the brand recognition and goodwill you create. Now you also want to do all this without having to resort to the utterly ridiculous and obscure.

BRAINSTORMING First you need to brainstorm names that you want and then we will run each name through the process I designed below. A special note here is that you can have a legal name, the one that is filed with the state, IRS, and federal agencies, and then you can have DBAs (doing business as). The DBA is what your customer is going to interact with. That is the one that we are most concerned with right now. Your trusted attorney can help you set up a legal name and structure that will support your business, while also making sure that you know exactly how your business is going to impact your family now and when you die.


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CORE DOCUMENT | NAMING YOUR BUSINESS If you’ve ever had to name a child, then you know how hard it is to find just the right name for the little person in your life. Naming a business is even harder. While there are no rules to stop you from naming your daughter Jennifer or your son Jack, there are lots of rules concerning what you can and cannot name your business and ideas. You may have had your “name” for years. You may have no idea what your “name” is or should be. A baby takes 40 weeks to grow, it’s more than acceptable to take a similar amount of time before officially naming your business. Both are ok. Naming your business is art + law. Naming exercise This exercise is to help you get your ideas down on paper. No censorship during this process. If you think it, you write it down.

Question Answer What do I want to name my company?

What do those names mean to me?

What do I want the name of my company to stand for?

What emotions do I want my company to evoke in my customers?

How do I want my customers to “feel” about the company?

How often do I want the customers to interact with my company?

Do I have any ties to another country? What language is spoken in that country?


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Can I translate my company name into another language? What do my children’s names mean? Would I like to incorporate those meanings into the company?

Where is my favorite place to vacation?

What do I like to do on vacation?

What is my favorite food? Why is it my favorite food? Describe the food with adjectives? Do any of these adjectives make sense for my company?

What are the names of my customer’s favorite companies? Are there any themes that would translate to my company?

What is the company going to do?

How is the company going to provide products/services?

Other ideas or thoughts I have about the company or words to describe an aspect of the company.

Are there any professional, state, or federal naming guidelines/requirements on my name?


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CORE DOCUMENT |TOP 10 NAMES Now go through your list and highlight/choose your favorite 10 words or phrases. Remember you are thinking like your ideal customer and balancing that with you, your skills, and any legal requirements8 that affect your business.

1. _______________________________________________________________________

2. _______________________________________________________________________

3. _______________________________________________________________________

4. _______________________________________________________________________

5. _______________________________________________________________________

6. _______________________________________________________________________

7. _______________________________________________________________________

8. _______________________________________________________________________

9. _______________________________________________________________________

10. _______________________________________________________________________

CORE DOCUMENT | TARGET NAME LIST Now using your Top 10 list from above, create some names that you think would make good names for your business.

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________


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VETTING THE NAME | SOCIAL | LEGAL | PRACTICAL Before we move forward, prepare for the worst – your name is taken. Patience is key right now. Now the planets may align and the name you have chosen is going to work. Or you may need to go through this exercise a few times to find a name that works. The business world that we live in is now controlled by not just legal anymore, social media, and practicality are almost more important.

NAME TRACKER Use this sheet to track each name you are vetting9. Write the name down and then take notes as you work your way through the various social and legal checks. When you find a name that meets each check, then you may have your winner.

Name

Who

is.c

om

Face

book

P

inte

rest

Twitt

er

Link

ed IN

Inst

agra

m

Vin

e Y

ouTu

be C

hane

l S

tate

Leg

al N

ame

Dat

abas

e Fe

dera

l Tra

dem

ark

Dat

abas

e In

tern

atio

nal ™

Dat

abas

e Id

eal C

usto

mer

can

un

ders

tand

this

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

HELP! I CAN’T FIND A NAME! www.whois.com Start here. Enter the name you want and see if it’s available. .com is still the gold standard but there are ways to get around a name if the .com is taken. When you find a name, ideally you want all four of these and will purchase all of them

.com .net .org .biz


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The reason that I recommend purchasing all 4 is that it will secure your brand and prevent someone else from coming in and making the .net version of your name more popular and leave you in the dust.

SKINNING THE CAT You’ve tried every name on your Top Name list and all of them are taken! You’re frustrated! It’s ok, I always say that there’s more than one way to skin a cat or if Plan A doesn’t work, be willing to embrace the rest of the neglected alphabet. Put your creative hat on and maybe enlist the help of a few of your closest friends. You are going to find a name and keep your ideal customer and Google happy.

EXAMINE OTHER DOMAIN EXTENSIONS. .info could be used as [name].info/menu, or [name].info/pricing Looking at the extensions

from a different perspective allows you to see potential that exists below the obvious.

SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS Long URLs are not necessarily bad. Sometimes spelling out a long name makes sense. Do not use punctuation (no periods or hyphens) Stay away from phonetic spellings or “creative” spellings If a phonetic spelling makes sense, then make sure to buy the alternate URLs when you

are buying your main site name.

OWNERSHIP How does your business need to own the intellectual property portfolio? This is an issue that you need to think through and is another example of why hiring an attorney (expert on this stuff) is so, so important.

Are you a sole proprietor or do you have partners?

What is your business structure?

Is it better for another legal entity to own the mark?

What is your ownership plan?


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™ REGISTRATION

RESOURCES

UNITED STATES PATENT & TRADEMARK OFFICE | WEBSITE Ok, so you’ve decided that what you probably need is trademark protection. The good news is that there are some quick, easy, and FREE ways to tell others that you are claiming ownership in your name, slogan, logo, etc. In this legal world, this is termed PUTTING THEM ON NOITCE. And notice is uber-super important! Often notice is step 1 in deciding whether you have a legal leg to stand on. Now notice is not the end up of the game! It’s just a way to let others know that you know what you created is valuable and you want to tell them about it. The government is not protecting you right now. And that makes sense right? How can they protect you if they don’t know about you? When you go through the formal registration process, then they know about you and can help by offering their protection.

PROTECT YOURSELF TODAY | DIY STEPS 1. Add a copyright notice to the footer of your Web site and or Blog. Below in the copyright

section, I explain in more detail the reason for this.

2. Add the ™ to the name of your company, names of your products, names of your slogans, etc.

3. NOW pay close attention! You are only telling people that see these marks that you are claiming ownership. YOU HAVE NO PROTECTION FROM THE GOVERNMENT.

PROTECT YOURSELF FUTURE | FORMAL REGISTRATION Formal registration is the next step that you want to take to protect your valuable intellectual property (your “oil”). You don’t want anyone else to sneak in during the middle of the night, throw up their own oil well, and steal your oil!

1. Interview some attorneys. Here are some good questions to get you started and what the answers will tell you.

Do you like being an attorney? o The answer should be a resounding “Yes!”

It needs to be in this format:

© Year Owner’s Name


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o If it’s not, then you’ll probably not like working with them because they don’t like what they are doing. Just think about your own life, what do you like to do? How is your demeanor and patience when you are doing something you love vs. something you hate. Attorneys are no different and you are trying to find a long-term relationship with someone who is going to know all sorts of intimate details about you. They need to love being an attorney.

o No one has probably ever asked them this question.

Who do you like to work with? o They should be able to tell you this in one sentence. Expect specificity. A

generalized answer means that they don’t have their niche defined and you want an attorney with a defined niche.

o Attorneys who take the take to define their niche are rare. o It takes a lot to say no to work and different types of cases. You want someone

who is focused on the area that impacts you.

Why do you practice this area of law? o So often attorneys practice a certain area by default and then stay there for years

and do not enjoy what they are doing. o You want someone that can tell you the story behind how they got to where they

are. o They may have fallen into this area but what has kept them there.

What would you do if you weren’t an attorney?

o A very telling question. o If you get answers like “jewelry designer”, or “race car driver” ask why. It’s ok to

ask. I want to know what people would do if they weren’t doing their current job. o In complete transparency, I’d be organizing and helping others in another area of

life – it’s what I was meant to do. But for me I love knowing the rulebook (aka law) and know that my purpose is to “change the face of law one exceptional attorney at a time.” If I can change your experience with the law and attorneys, then I’ve accomplished my mission.

2. Get an attorney on your team. Once you’ve found the person that gets you, gets your business, and you can see building a long-term relationship with hire them. Don’t delay. He or she will be more valuable than the team that handles your Web site.

3. Put your attorney on speed dial. They should be the first person you want to call when

you are cooking up a new idea. Your ideas and the success or failure of your business impact your personal life in ways you may not know.

How much money you pay Uncle Sam now and when you die? How your estate handles your business affairs when you die? Who can legally act for you if you are unconscious or unable to work for a period of time? Is this partnership or joint venture (JV) going to harm you? What if you get divorced – can your spouse take your business?

4. Listen to the experts. If you are going to go the DIY route then use the Trademark and

Copyright Web sites. All the information you need is there. Online form providers that advertise on TV – I know you know who I am talking about make it look like you give them a few hundred dollars and every thing is easy peasy --- please, please, please, read their disclaimers. Here is just such a disclaimer from the site10. (See later in the guide for why LegalZoom® is not a good choice for most people.)


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I’m all about easy and saving time and money but I spent three years of my life learning that there is no such thing as a simple solution when the law is involved. Any site that can provide me infomercial pricing and delivery in a few minutes is too good to be true. At the very least, contact your attorney, consult them and then have them recommend what you need.

The formal registration process involves filing an application and receiving formal approval from the USPTO.

© REGISTRATION

RESOURCES FOR YOU Elegantly organized just for you. You have Google® and YouTube® so you can figure out anything. My goal is to make life a whole lot easier by putting what you need to know in one spot. You have a 1000 other tasks that will add value to your life – blindly searching for information on your copyright should not be required.

UNITED STATES COPYRIGHT OFFICE | CLICK HERE U.S. Copyright Office Library of Congress 101 Independence Ave SE | Washington, DC 20559

COPYRIGHT BASICS | CLICK HERE

THE 1976 COPYRIGHT ACT | CLICK HERE

MANDATORY DEPOSITS OF © WORKS | CLICK HERE

WHAT EXACTLY DOES A COPYRIGHT © COVER? A copyright © is a form of legal protection for the authors of “original works of authorship,” in these categories:

Literary11 Musical & any accompanying words Dramatic & any accompanying music (see above) Pantomimes and choreographic Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural Motion pictures and other audiovisual Sound recordings Architectural

WHAT A COPYRIGHT © IS NOT GOING TO COVER

Work that’s “invisible” -- have to be able to hold it in your hands. A work that is not in fixed tangible form of expression. This might be a dance that hasn’t been recorded, or a speech and or performance that has not been written or recorded. If you think about it


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this makes sense. How in the world can the courts protect you for something that isn’t tangible?

You need a Trademark. Stuff that should be covered by a Trademark registration ™ instead. This is going to be stuff like titles, names, short phrases, slogans, familiar symbols, designs, typographic alterations, colors, etc. Remember Trademarks are so you know the origin or source of the good (tangible item).

You need a Patent. Stuff that should be covered by a Patent filing.

Nothing original. This covers all the “stuff” that is common property and there is no

original work of authorship. For example calendars, height or weight charts, tape measures, rulers, and any kind of public lists or tables. If you didn’t create it you can’t ask the courts to protect you.

PUBLISHING IS NO LONGER A REQUIREMENT. A copyright © is available to published and unpublished works12. Both give you, the owner a way to use the work, or allow others to use your copyright under a set of guidelines within certain limits. Publication as it works for you today:

So while you get an immediate copyright © when you create a work, PUBLICATION of that work is still very important.

When you publish your work in the United States it must be deposited with the Library of Congress.

Publication can affect the limitations on your exclusive rights as the copyright owner.13

If you published anonymously, used a pseudonym, or work for hire, then the year you

publish may determine the duration of copyright protection.

You can use the copyright © when you publish.

YOU DON’T GET A DICTATORSHIP OVER YOUR © The FAIR USE doctrine is one way that the scope of an owner’s © is limited. There are also other limitations that the federal government puts on how much power you have over others’ and your work.14

“Publication” is the distribution of copies or phonorecords of a work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending. The offering to distribute copies or phonorecords to a group of persons for purposes of further distribution, public performance, or public display constitutes publication. A public performance or display of a work does not of itself constitute publication. The 1976 Copyright Act


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IMMEDIATE PROTECTION You create an idea in a fixed form (meaning get it out of your brain) and your copyright in the work of authorship immediately becomes your property. But you do not have the full legal protections that come with registration. What this means is that when you go to court to fight about who has what rights you are going to have to prove (burden of proof) that the work is yours. BUT I PAID SOMEONE ELSE TO CREATE SOMETHING. Now many of us hire others to create work for us that falls under the copyright umbrella. The law calls this “work for hire” and have specifically written out what is covered. You as the employer are considered the owner, not the employee that you hired.

I WANT A COPYRIGHT ©. You can probably tell that you already have one. If you’ve created an original work of authorship, the protection was immediate but not complete. This is often where copyright and copyright registration are confused. Your COPYRIGHT © works like this

1. You had an idea. 2. You wrote it down, recorded it, performed it, or otherwise put it into some FIXED form.

a. A copy is a tangible object where you work can be read, or seen by others (using a machine or device, book, manuscript, sheet music, film, videotape, microfilm.)

b. A phonorecord is a tangible form that covers sounds (cassette tapes, CDs, or vinyl disks.)

3. Fixed copy form = copyright automatically attached.

AND THIS IS HOW YOU NEED TO IDENTIFY YOUR AUTHORSHIP © YYYY Owner which looks like this for me © 2013 Vujà Dé Law, PLC

IS MY WORK PROTECTED FOREVER? You created it by yourself. If it was created after January 1, 1978, it is automatically

protected when you create it + 70 years after you die.

You created it with some one else (not work for hire). After January 1, 1978, it is automatically protected when you create it + 70 years after the last of the author-creators to die.

You used work for hire, remained anonymous, or had a pseudonym that wasn’t revealed

in the Copyright Office records. Then you get 95 years from publication OR 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter.

DO I GET A BENEFIT FROM REGISTERING MY COPYRIGHT? Yes. You already know that you have © protection immediately but the law wants to give you some incentives to actually registering your ©. Here is how they sweeten the deal for you:

Your registration establishes a public record of your copyright claim.


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You catch someone infringing (using your work) well you have to register your work

before you can sue them in court, if you created your work in the United States.

If you register before or within 5 years of publishing your work, then the court takes that registration as the required proof15 that your copyright is valid and the facts you put in the registration certificate are true. This means that no one gets to argue with you.

If you register within 3 months after you publish and before there is an infringement of

your work, then you can get statutory damages and attorney’s fees in a court action. This means that the law says you get a set dollar amount regardless of how much actual harm or damage the person did to you. This is a good thing in the law because it works like this: (1) you registered, (2) someone infringed, (3) registration is proof that your copyright is valid, no arguing, (4) you get money. This is what we call simple in law.

No registration means that you can only get an award of actual damages and profits. This

is what we call a legal migraine. You will spend a lot of money to prove actual damages and profits.

If you register, you get to record your registration with the U.S. Customs Service for

protection against other people importing products that you didn’t authorize.

OK, OK, I DEFINITELY WANT TO GET MY © REGISTERED. HOW DO I DO

IT?

SEARCHING EXISTING COPYRIGHTS FIRST How to Investigate the Copyright Status of a Work

The Copyright Card Catalog and the Online Files of the Copyright Office

Copyright Web Site

FILING AN APPLICATION There are 3 parts to filing an original claim to a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office

1. A competed application form.

2. A nonrefundable filing fee. Basic16 filings: $35/online, $65/paper17

3. A nonreturnable deposit. A copy or copies of your work that you will “deposit” with the Copyright Office.

Who can file an application?

You as the author. You either created the work, or you hired (employer) someone (employee) to create the work.

Copyright claimant.

The owner of exclusive right(s).


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An authorized agent of one of the above.

An attorney is not required to fill out the application or file it.

YOU MAY BE LEGALLY REQUIRED TO DEPOSIT YOUR © WORK Believe it or not you may be breaking the law right now. You see while REGISTRATION is not required, the COPYRIGHT ACT did create a mandatory deposit requirement for works published in the United States. The general law/rule is that if you are the owner of the copyright or the owner of the exclusive right of publication in the work, then you have a legal obligation to deposit the work in the Copyright Office within 3 months of publication in the United States. You need to provide the Copyright Office 2 copies or phonorecords for the use of the Library of Congress. What happens if I don’t? You may be subject to fines and other penalites; but your copyright protection is not affected.

CATEGORIES THAT HAVE DIFFERENT DEPOSIT REQUIREMENTS. Exempt from mandatory deposit law.


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PATENT REGISTRATION

HOW TO GET A PATENT | CLICK HERE

FINDING AN ATTORNEY THAT CAN DO PATENTS | CLICK HERE You need an attorney if you are working on protecting a patent. And only certain attorneys are licensed to practice before the USPTO.

HOW PATENT LAWS ARE CHANGING | CLICK HERE

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT PATENTS | CLICK HERE


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ENFORCEMENT | YOUR POLICE FORCE Once you’ve taken the steps to protect your IP portfolio (your oil field) now you need to enforce it. The law does put some responsibility on you. If you knew about or should’ve known about someone using pieces of your intellectual property portfolio AND you do nothing, then you may lose the rights that you paid money and spent time protecting.

DIY POLICING I am a firm believer in learning how to do things so that I can either (1) do it myself, or (2) hire wisely. Here are some quick, easy, and FREE ways to police your IP portfolio.

1. Set up Google alerts for all the pieces of your intellectual property portfolio (names, close

names, your name, taglines, etc.)

2. Copyscape.com | website | This Web site has resources that you can use to put users on notice that you are claiming ownership of your materials.

PAID POLICING Depending on the nature and size of your IP portfolio you may need (and want) to hire a business that specializes in IP monitoring. I do not use these services personally, so please make sure to use your common-sense skills and evaluate any company before you sign on the dotted line. There are lots of scams in this area unfortunately. Please make sure that the investment you are spending to hire a company to matches with your enforcement goals. If you are going to pay someone to monitor but don’t want to then have to spend the money to deal with any issues, then it doesn’t make sense to pay to monitor, or really register to be perfectly honest.

ENFORCEMENT GAME PLAN As you are working with your attorney make sure that you know exactly what steps to take when and if you find someone stealing from you. Your attorney should lay out exactly what you need to do, what he or she will do, and how the two of you need to work together to maximize your enforcement.

CORE DOCUMENT | ENFORCEMENT PROTOCOL Here is a sample GAME PLAN for designing your own enforcement protocol.

STEP WHO IS RESPONSIBLE STATUS

I found someone using my ™ ® or ©

Business owner

Or Attorney (you will pay extra to have the attorney monitor your IP portfolio)

Contact the infringer 1. Business owner: your attorney may have provided you a letter to send when you find someone infringing on your ™ ® or ©. Make sure to follow the attorney’s directions when you send these letters.

2. Your attorney: you may have paid for your attorney to send these letters on your behalf.

Make sure you understand how and when you are charged for these letters.

Infringer responds positively

Great! Make sure that all the contact information and result is properly logged. Your attorney should provide this chart for you to fill out or provide you updates according to your arrangement.

Infringer responds This is always unfortunate.


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negatively You and your attorney need to make sure that you agree on how to handle no response or an “in your face” response.

TRADEMARK ENFORCEMENT BUNDLE I offer a Trademark Enforcement Bundle that is designed to help you identify, notify, and stop the infringement on your brand. If you would like information about this please email [email protected] and I will be glad to send you the details.

HOW TO HIRE LEGAL WORK | BLOG POST

ONLINE DIY FORM CENTERS The wrong form can cost you thousands. The wrong form is not just the $19.00 as advertised. The wrong form is hours and hours of wasted time trying to undo it (it’s legally binding). The wrong form is hundreds and often thousands of dollars trying to undo it (because it’s legally binding you’re going to need an attorney.) My value (and the value of other really cool attorneys) is not filling out forms. My value is knowing what form you need and making sure your business and family are legally safe.

MY LOVE/HATE RELATIONSHIP WITH FORM CENTERS Love: financial gain for my business because I know how to undo the quick $19.99 action that my client business owner made. Hate: the emotional and financial havoc they wreck on you. Those centers are filling the “fast food” mentality that we all have – pay you a $1 and get food in less than 30 seconds. And unfortunately too many business owners, exceptional people having the courage to own their value and economy are taken advantage of. My main business is education. My job is to provide you the best education I can and then let you make the decisions. Form sites are simply that – form sites. Based on the questions you answer, the code tells the computer what form to give you, and fills it out for you. You are simply getting a one-size-fits-all form filled in with your information. There are times to use a DIY product. Anything that involves your health, finances, or legal health is not such a time. There simply is too much at stake. Take this for instance:

Jane and Kate decided to enter into a partnership. They complete each other. They spend hours talking over coffee and creating a business that is ideal for them in every sense of the word. One night Jane sees a commercial where Jessica Alba has used an online form site to form her company. It was so easy. She thinks if it was good enough for Jessica Alba then it’ll totally work for us. She creates the user id and in less than 30 minutes and a couple hundred dollars she’s set up the company and good to go.


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First off, does Jane really think that Jessica Alba was in her sweats one night and decided to form her own company? I sure hope not. I’m pretty sure that this is someone that has a team of assistants and advisors and one or two attorneys on her speed dial. You don’t do multi-million dollar deals and not have people looking out for you. Secondly, did she do this ad for free because she just loves the company? Again probably no. I’m guessing that her agent (member of her business team) probably hooked up a deal between the company’s attorneys, her attorneys, her business team people, when she mentioned that she’d like to start a company. This was not a mom sitting in her sweats watching TV that jumped on the internet and formed a legal entity. Finally, let’s assume that everything works splendidly and there are never any issues (rarely does that happen in life, so don’t think it’s like that in business) – who owns the company? Who owns the intellectual property? If Jane or Kate die what happens? What tax bracket is Jane in? Does it make more sense to have Kate own the intellectual property? What happens if the partnership goes south – who gets the company? Can you see how there are so many other dimensions beyond just clicking boxes? I hope so.

RELATIONSHIP BASED ATTORNEY | VUJÀ DÉ LAW The face of law is changing. I can’t cure cancer but I can change the face of law. And I know that my purpose in this amazing life that I get to live is to change how you experience legal services and working with an attorney. I created Vujà Dé Law to help busy enterprising women tie up legal loose ends one exceptional experience at a time. You created a life and business you love, now get it (and keep it) legally healthy! You have options for how and where you hire people to join your business and family’s legal team. What you need is

Access to elegantly organized information. Transparent pricing. High-quality legal work product. Attorneys that are individuals, business owners, and attorneys (3rd). This requires a

different mindset than someone who is first and foremost an attorney.

BENEFITS

I develop and maintain relationships with my customers. I educate you about the laws that impact your life and your business. After all those go

hand-in-hand. I want and need you to educate me about your business. You are unique.


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Your business is vital to your current and future customers. You are the only one that can meet their needs.

A GOOD FIT FOR . . . Business owners that value relationship. Business owners that tell the truth. Business owners that value others.

A REALLY BAD FIT FOR . . . People that don’t tell the truth. People that want to complain about everything.

QUESTIONS | ANSWERS | CONCERNS

WHY CAN’T I JUST USE LEGALZOOM®? You totally can. I encourage you to if you are price shopping for forms. I will never meet the prices of those providers. I’m not in the form filling out business. I am in the business of making sure that you have what you need when you need it in the way that it works for you, your business, and your family.

IS IT WORTH SPENDING MONEY TO WORK WITH AN ATTORNEY V. THE DIY

APPROACH? That completely depends on you and your comfort level. All the law you need to know is available to the public. But there is a reason that attorneys had to go to law school (2-5 years) and pass the bar exam – our governments know that just like any other professional attorneys need to be trained. Now if my only choice was to work with an ego-filled attorney who couldn’t use words I understood, didn’t stay in touch with me, and was completely out of touch with reality, then yes, I would whole-heartedly embrace a DIY approach. But that’s not the case. You have options. There are lots of great attorneys out there. All you need to do is interview a few and find one that works well for you. I love DIY but I know my limits. This is exactly the formula I use when trying to decide whether to DIY or hire a professional --

Is it something I can do? I can’t do brain surgery. I can’t fix my car.


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Is it something that I should do? I should not fix my plumbing or sprinkling system.

Is it something I want to do? I don’t want to paint my house.

Am I going to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars more because I am not an expert? A rookie mistake I spent way too much time on my Web site.

At a bare minimum interview and hire an attorney that you can call before and when the shit hits the fan. That is worth its weight in gold. I purposely create education guides and videos for my clients so that the stuff that they are totally capable of handling they do. I will tell them when they can do it themselves and when they need my brain to help save them from themselves.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN “NOT A LAW FIRM”, “NOT GIVING LEGAL ADVICE”? When you read the disclaimers on form generation sites – which I know you all do!!! Those are all magic words that are limiting the liability of the person or company. You’ll see in my footer that “all contents are for educational and informational purposes only.” I put that there because I don’t want you to take this information and self-diagnose yourself. I want to educate you. When you are educated you make better decisions and know where to go and get the information. Please take a close look at the disclaimers18 on any site that is providing legal assistance. They are limiting their liability at your exposure. It’s one thing if you are purchasing educational type materials. It’s a totally different story if you are setting up a business structure, forming a partnership, or trying to protect your intellectual property. Sure the online sites are quick and easy. They have leveraged technology and by building a form that dumps into a database, they can auto-create a form quickly without the need for a person. Do you want to be diagnosed and treated by your doctor or dentist online? I hope you say no. You need a person. You need someone willing to stand behind their advice and alongside your company. I do not say any of that to discourage you from using the DIY services. I say it to educate you. I have been on the other end of the stick – the trying to help a client out of a situation caused by price shopping for a form rather than investing in a relationship with a trusted advisor for the long-term. It’s not fun. No one needs legal stuff when everything is going along swimmingly – we all need the correct legal stuff when you know what hits the fan.

I AM DIFFERENT. VUJÀ DÉ LAW IS DIFFERENT. The name says it all. Vujà Dé means to look at life from a new perspective. It is the opposite of déjà vu.


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I operate a business designed to serve you, your family, and your business. I am here because I believe in what you are doing and I want to walk alongside you each step of the journey. Working with me is an investment in your company. I totally understand that you are pouring your heart, soul, and finances into this business. I get it. I am in the same place. I get it you are trying to make the best decisions for your company. I do the same. But one valuable skill I also have as a business owner is knowing when to price shop and when to invest.

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO? It depends. You are at a crossroads. I hope that this guide has helped you in some way (and hopefully lots). If you appreciate the information but want to go it alone, I hope that you have some guidance on what to look for in a form distribution center and the disclaimers for their products. They are a good fit for some businesses. If you want help on your side, then I encourage you to interview and find an attorney that you can build a long-term relationship with. If you’d like to see if we’re a good fit, then click here -- scheduling a COFFEE CHAT WITH ME. Just like you I have dream clients and not everyone fits that bill. After our chat we may decide that we’re a great fit or that we’re not what either one is looking for – and that’s ok. I know I’m not a good fit for everyone and that’s a good thing. I love the women and businesses that I’ve been lucky to work with and I want to keep it that way. But I do want you to get an attorney on your team pronto! You’ve got way too much to protect! I wish you the greatest success! And millions of dollars! All the best! Tamsen


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DEFINITIONS

AUTHOR

COPYRIGHT CLAIMANT This is either the author of the work or a person or organization that has obtained ownership of all the rights under the copyright initially belonging to the author. This includes a person or organization that has obtained by contract the right to claim legal title to the copyright in an application for copyright registration.

COPYRIGHT OWNER

EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS OWNER

PUBLISH

REGISTRATION

WORKS


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i IP stands for intellectual property and covers patents, trademarks ™ ®, and copyrights © ii Statutory notice means Addecco couldn’t have said, “We just didn’t know.” When you go through a formal application and registration process, those forms are available, and the government expects others to go searching for them. iii United States Patent & Trademark Web site, http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/definitions.jsp (accessed July 12, 2013). iv Categories are BROAD. Literary may include computer programs and compilations. Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural may include maps and architectural plans. v Social covers all forms of social media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.).

ii Statutory notice means Addecco couldn’t have said, “We just didn’t know.” When you go through a formal application and registration process, those forms are available, and the government expects others to go searching for them. iii United States Patent & Trademark Web site, http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/definitions.jsp (accessed July 12, 2013). iv Categories are BROAD. Literary may include computer programs and compilations. Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural may include maps and architectural plans. v Social covers all forms of social media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.). Legal covers both the formal business structure and any DBAs (doing business as) Practical addresses making sure your ideal customer can actually find and remember your business. vi What people immediately associate with your product or service; the “look” or “feel” of what you have created. vii For more education about developing your ideal customer profile you can look at the My Business, My Plan full program. 8 Certain professions have legal standards or requirements for what your name may or may not contain. Always check with your attorney before filing any documents that include your name. 9 Green = whois.com Start here and search to see if the domain is taken; Purple = Social; Orange = Legal; Turquoise = Practical 10 “Disclaimer: Communications between you and LegalZoom are protected by our Privacy Policy but not by the attorney-client privilege or as work product. LegalZoom provides access to independent attorneys and self-help services at your specific direction. We are not a law firm or a substitute for an attorney or law firm. We cannot provide any kind of advice, explanation, opinion, or recommendation about possible legal rights, remedies, defenses, options, selection of forms or strategies. Your access to the website is subject to our Terms of Use.” Legal Zoom Web site, http://www.legalzoom.com (accessed July 12, 2013). 11 Categories are BROAD. Literary may include computer programs and compilations. Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural may include maps and architectural plans. 12 This is different from the previous version of the Copyright Act. 13 The limitations are outlined in Sections 107-122 in the 1976 Copyright Act. 14 See Sections 107-122 here. 15 The fancy legal term is prima facie evidence. 16 Basic claims include (1) a single work; (2) multiple unpublished works if the elements are assembled in an orderly form; and (3) multiple published works if they are all first published together in the same publication on the same date and owned by the same claimant. 17 http://www.copyright.gov/forms/ Accessed August 14, 2013. 18 Disclaimer: Communications between you and [online form provider] are protected by [online form provider’s privacy policy] but not by the attorney-client privilege or as work product. [Online form provider] provides access to independent attorneys and self-help services at your specific direction. We are not a law firm or a substitute for an attorney or law firm. We cannot provide any kind of advice, explanation, opinion, or recommendation about possible legal rights, remedies, defenses, options, selection of forms or strategies. Your access to the website is subject to [online form provider’s] Terms of Use.

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