Santa Ana Trademark Lawyer
Trademark Attorneys in Santa Ana Assisting with Trademark Needs
If you are located in Santa Ana and have a trademark legal issue, please contact us today. In the modern commercial environment, trademarks and servicemarks (collectively referred to as “trademarks”) are extremely important for any business. A trademark is a design, logo, word, symbol, or other device that allows consumers to identify the source of a product or service. Businesses that establish trademark rights are granted exclusive use of their trademarks and may prevent others from using trademarks that consumers may find confusingly similar. This allows parties that provide goods or services to develop goodwill among consumers—an intangible asset that can have a significant impact on a company’s bottom line. Some examples of well-known trademarks that you likely see on a daily basis include Coca-Cola, Google, Toyota, MasterCard, Starbucks, and Yahoo!.
New and established businesses must establish trademark protections to stop others from the unauthorized use of their trademarks. For this reason, anyone with questions, concerns, or legal needs with respect to trademarks should consult with a trademark attorney.
Santa Ana Trademark Registration
You can establish limited common law rights in a trademark simply by using it in commerce. By registering your trademark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, however, you receive additional legal rights and may more vigorously pursue parties who engage in the unauthorized use of your trademark or who use a confusingly similar one. Specific benefits of federal trademark registration include:
- When you register your trademark, you are allowed to use the ® symbol, while unregistered marks must use the ™ symbol. Using the registered trademark symbol puts the world on notice that you have registered your trademark with the federal government and can dissuade potential infringers from trying to misappropriate your trademark.
- Registering a trademark with the USPTO creates a legal presumption that your trademark is valid if a dispute later arises.
- When you register a trademark, you have certain legal remedies that common law trademark holders don’t have. For example, you can recover enhanced compensation for damages, any profits the infringer realized as a result of the misappropriation of your trademark, and attorney fees.
- Federal trademark registration can act as the basis for foreign trademark registration and can give you priority of rights as of your U.S. filing date.
We will work with you during every step of the trademark registration process. We will conduct a trademark search, help create a highly defensible trademark, and assist with the filing of the trademark application with the USPTO. Furthermore, if any issues arise during the registration process, our attorneys will communicate with the examining attorney or other agency officials to resolve any issues that may arise.
Providing Representation for Parties with Trademark Disputes
Trademark disputes are inevitable during the course of business, and arise when two or more parties disagree about the use of a particular trademark. In many instances, people can resolve these disputes without having to go to court. In most cases, having us send or respond to a cease and desist letter ultimately resolve the dispute.
Skilled Trademark Litigation Lawyers in Santa Ana
Sometimes, you cannot resolve a trademark dispute without litigation. Whether you are the party accusing someone else of infringing on your trademark or the party denying infringement, you should hire an experienced trademark lawyer to represent you. Should a plaintiff win a trademark infringement lawsuit, a court can:
- Order the infringing party to forfeit or destroy the infringing materials
- Award monetary damages to the plaintiff
- Order the infringing party to stop using the trademark at issue
- Order an award of willful damages including attorney fees
Most trademark litigation questions involve whether a trademark is similar enough to an existing registered trademark to confuse consumers. A likelihood of confusion can arise even in cases where the trademarks at issue are not identical. A plaintiff can prevail if the trademarks sound similar when spoken, look alike, or create the same commercial impression in consumers’ minds. Even if two trademarks are similar, however, a likelihood of confusion will not exist unless the trademarks are used to sell related goods and services. Because courts have significant discretion in determining whether trademarks are similar and whether goods and services are related, anyone involved in trademark litigation should have a trademark lawyer immediately to resolve the case as favorably as possible.
Contact Us Today to Discuss your issue with a Santa Ana Trademark Attorney
At Mandour & Associates, we provide competent and effective legal advice and representation to those with trademark issues. In addition to our work in trademark law, we also provide services related to copyrights, patents, trade secrets, and all other aspects of intellectual property. We work with clients throughout southern California including Santa Ana. For assistance, please complete our contact form.
