Imagine you’ve just launched a new product that you’ve been working on for months. You’ve invested a lot of time and money into creating a brand around it, including a unique logo and name. However, shortly after your launch, you receive a letter from another business claiming that you’re infringing on their trademark. This can be a devastating blow to your business, but it’s not uncommon.
We can help avoid these problems.
What is trademark defense?
Trademark defense is a process of protecting your business from allegations of trademark infringement. Here are a few ways that we can help you.
Trademark Search
A trademark search before you adopt and use a mark is the best defense against any allegation of trademark infringement. Our trademark search service will advise you whether another trademark owner might sue you for trademark infringement if you adopt and use a mark. If so, we would advise you to change your mark or to make modifications to reduce the possibility of litigation in the future.
We understand that as a business, you want to avoid litigation. As we say, you don’t make money being in litigation. You make money be selling goods and services to customers. We want you to do as much of that as possible by staying out of litigation.
Negotiating a settlement
However, staying out of litigation is not always possible. In this case, we help entrepreneurs and businesses defend against allegations of trademark infringement. If you received a cease and desist letter, then we can help you understand the next steps so that you do not give up your rights.
The first step in defending against any allegation of trademark infringement is to determine the scope of their trademark rights and whether your use of a similar mark is infringing on the trademark owner’s trademark rights.
We then hold a conference with you where we cover the weaknesses and strengths of your case. Only after a careful analysis can we recommend a next steps plan of action.
The possible next steps may be to:
- Negotiate a settlement with the trademark owner
- Send a response detailing why there is no likelihood of confusion between the respective marks
The goal of our trademark defense services is to assess the merit of the case so that you know whether to fight the letter or negotiate a settlement. If the allegations of infringement are strong, then our goal is to mitigate your loss and to ensure that you can continue to effectively compete with the patent owner. If the infringement case is weak, then we need to forcefully respond back to the patent owner.
Working with Clients Throughout Orange County & Beyond
Because we are located in Irvine, many of our clients live or work in Orange County, California communities like Mission Viejo, Aliso Viejo, and Santa Ana. But we also work with clients in surrounding areas, like the San Gabriel Valley, Los Angeles County, and elsewhere in Southern California.