Intellectual Property Law

Seeking Economic Advancement For Companies Through The Protection Of Intellectual Property Rights And Assets

Securing and enforcing intellectual property rights is an everyday component of running a corporation. Intellectual property is a work or invention that is the result of a creative act. These works and the regulations that regulate them are divided into groups:

  • Trademarks are trademarked visuals or words that are associated with a specific product or corporation.
  • Copyrights secure ownership of a creative work to ensure that only the creator or licensees may reproduce and distribute it.
  • Trade secrets are business processes or manufacturing information that is kept secret to gain a competitive advantage in a particular industry.
  • Patents are registered methods or innovations that may not be used by anyone other than the creator without permission from the creator.

Intellectual property rights originate from creation and use of intangible property. You do need to register intellectual property with state and or federal agencies to own and use it. It is advisable to register your intellectual property. Registration facilitates owner intellectual property protection.  It gives notice of a claim of ownership to all U.S. market members. It supports the legal presumption of ownership and possession of exclusive right to use the intellectual property. It allows owners to sue others related to their misuse of intellectual property.

We work with clients to create Intellectual Property strategies that identify:

  • Words, phrases, symbols, or designs that distinguish the company’s goods or services from those of competitors and should be trademarked.
  • Copyrights should be obtained for the company’s literary works, produced software, sound recordings, visual arts, motion pictures, and theatrical works.
  • Information that gives the company an economic advantage because it rarely is known and should be treated as a trade secret.
  • Intellectual Property Licensing Strategies
  • Intellectual Property Franchising Strategies.
  • Technology Transfer Strategies.

We work with clients to create Intellectual Property Procedures that:

  • Protect the company’s
  • Protect the company’s
  • Protect the company’s Trade Secrets.
  • Block others from unfairly using the company’s intellectual property.
  • Protect the company against intellectual property “IP-bullies.
  • Provide provisions for intellectual property dispute resolution.

A further discussion of these intellectual property matters is provided in the Intellectual Property section of the Blog.

Intellectual Property Services Provided

Our Arizona Intellectual Property Attorneys have twenty years of experience protecting the intellectual property of small businesses. Although our firm’s headquarters are located in Phoenix, we serve clients throughout the entire state, including Tucson. In addition, our Intellectual Property Attorneys assist small businesses with intellectual property infringement concerns involving trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. Our assistance for clients includes::

  • Acquiring trademarks identifying and distinguishing the company’s goods or services from those of a competitor and making it easier for a consumer to identify the company’s products or services. Trademarks are usually words, phrases, symbols, designs, or a combination of these.  The Lanham Act, which is a federal law, protects trademarks. If your trademark qualifies for protection, you can obtain rights to the trademark either by being the first to use the mark in commerce or by being the first to register the mark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
  • Obtaining copyrights to safeguard your original works of authorship, also called “writings.” With the advancement of communication technologies, the definition of “writing” has expanded. Writings currently include literary works, dramatic works, software, visual arts, motion films, sound recordings, and choreographed dance. Software developers, photographers, writers, artists, musicians, and other creators of original works of expression obtain copyrights when they create an original work in a fixed medium. A copyright holder has the exclusive right to reproduce, perform, display, distribute, license, and prepare derivative works.  Although registering a copyright is voluntary, to enforce a right through litigation, the copyright must be formally registered with the Copyright Office.
  • Managing and protecting trade secret information that a company keeps secret and gives it an economic advantage because it rarely is known or readily ascertainable. This means the company limits access to the information to individuals who have agreed to protect it. Trade secrets are easily misappropriated. Employees, customers, developers, suppliers, and others can purloin it by memorizing it, noting it down, or copying it. Non-disclosure and Non-compete Agreements provide legally enforceable trade secret protection from competitors, employees, and anyone else disclosing and infringing upon protected information.
  • Technology Licensing and Purchasing Programs ensuring you are compensated when others use your technology. We work with clients to draft, review, and negotiate agreements used to commercialize technology products and services. These agreements address software licensing, technology transactions, consulting services, distribution, shrink-wrap licensing, joint ventures, development, and website terms of service and privacy.

Our Arizona Intellectual Property attorneys provide legal counsel to small business clients located in Phoenix, Tucson, Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, Glendale, Scottsdale, Peoria, and Tempe on matters pertaining to trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets.

Intellectual Property Contracts

Contracts support protecting your intellectual property. They must be carefully drafted to serve your unique needs and protect your interests. Our firm has drafted and or reviewed numerous types of Intellectual Property contracts / agreements including:

  • Design Agreements used to buy or sell ideas for logos and websites.
  • Intellectual Property Agreements detailing whether the developer or the business who hired the developer owns the software or technology developed.
  • Intellectual Property Licensing Contracts allowing the owner of the intellectual property to charge for their invention.
  • Non-Disclosure Agreements protecting ideas or technology from disclosure or use by a party receiving such information.
  • Trademark Licensing Agreements identifying the Mark to be used and the fee to be paid for use of the Mark.

A further discussion of each of these intellectual property contracts / agreements is provided in the Contracts Section of the Blog.

Intellectual Property Dispute Representation

In today’s competitive creative economy, ideas are the most crucial thing to safeguard. With so many channels and streams to monitor, identifying the ownership and originality of a design, brand name, or idea requires the laser-focused attention of a professional intellectual property attorney. We handle trademark and copyright searches, applications, and filings. If your idea is infringed upon, our litigation team will negotiate the most favorable settlement terms on your behalf. Failure to enforce intellectual property rights by monitoring for misuses and perusing infringement claims may weaken the owner’s rights. Our firm has represented clients in numerous types of Intellectual Property disputes including:

  • Trademark Disputes stemming from a party’s unauthorized use of another’s trademark, which results in trademark infringement, unfair competition, or trademark dilution. Successful litigants may be awarded injunctions preventing further trademark infringement as well as monetary compensation including damages, profits, and litigation expenses.
  • Copyright Disputes arise when a party copies or distributes a copyrighted work without the authorization of the copyright holder.
  • Trade Secret Disputes arise when a company’s trade secrets are misappropriated by “improper means,” which includes bribery, theft, breach of an obligation to maintain secrecy, misrepresentation, or espionage via electronic or other means.

A further discussion of each of these intellectual property disputes is provided in the Disputes Resolution Section of the Blog.

Contacting The Calhoun Law Firm, PLC

If our capabilities match your needs, we invite you to contact us today by one of these means:

  • Call us at 877-455-6344 to evaluate our capabilities to address your situation.
  • Submit an inquiry via our Contact Us Form to brief your situation and needs.
  • Schedule a 45-minute legal Consultation via our client portal to review your situation and potential approaches by which your objectives can be met.

Our Intellectual Property Attorneys have twenty years of experience protecting the intellectual property of clients. In addition, our Intellectual Property Attorneys assist clients with intellectual property infringement concerns involving trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. Small businesses operating in Phoenix, Tucson, Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, Glendale, Scottsdale, Peoria, and Tempe, as well as residents of other adjacent communities, are regular recipients of legal counsel and representation from our firm.