Intellectual Property

Intellectual property is possibly the least understood and most confusing field of law to non-attorneys. In the digital age, where every person is creating a small mountain of content on to the Internet, intellectual property rights have simultaneously become more important, more complicated, and more controversial. Even if you plan on freely sharing and distributing your work, securing and safeguarding all of your authorship rights is vital to ensure that your material is not misused or, even worse, taken from you.

All authors automatically hold the copyright to any original work they create. Every poem, blog post, video and email you make is your intellectual property, absent some sort of contractual agreement. This is deceptively simple. Holding a copyright in a piece of work gives you great power, but few are in a position to actually use these rights. An author, for instance, owns his manuscript, but does not have a printing press or means of distributing his novel digitally. An attorney from Kurtz & Augenlicht could help the author negotiate contracts with both physical and on-line publishers and ensure that he does not give away too much power.

Trademarks have always been of the utmost important to businesses, protecting slogans, signs, logos and even packaging -- what we call "trade dress." The goal of every business, regardless of market or type, is to build up good will and associate that good will into a recognizable image or phrase that instantly brings their product to mind. The process to register a trademark is complex and precise, but useful and sometimes even necessary for even the smallest of businesses to establish and maintain their identity. At Kurtz & Augenlicht, we can sit down with you and discuss your strategy, make sure that you are not infringing upon anyone else's trademarks, prepare a trademark filing, and work with you to ensure that all of your materials are adequately protected.

An important consideration for any business owner or content creator is trade secrets. Everyone has heard of the secret formula for Coke, for instance, but few realize that important aspects of their business are eligible for and demand the same protections. Something as simple as a business's sales list or a special burger sauce a chef has developed could be essential to that business's success, and would lead to disaster if it were stolen. Protecting your trade secrets requires somewhat complex contractual agreements between yourself and your employees and certain practices to keep your secret safe. We would be happy to assess your need and work out a comprehensive plan to make sure your valuable secrets do not fall into the hands of your competitors.

As you can see, intellectual property is a large and complex field. Send us an email or call our office with any questions or concerns. We would be happy to discuss your issues (in person or over the web) and develop a strategy tailored to your needs.

If you need help, call us at 312.526.3928 or email Michael.