As a trademark attorney, I\u2019ve received my fair share of cries for help from business owners who filed applications through trademark filing services to reduce their startup costs. LegalZoom and Trademarkia are two well-known companies in the industry. \u00a0They sound like a great deal.\u00a0 The companies charge a fraction of what an attorney would cost.\u00a0 However, these companies are not law firms and they do not provide legal advice.<\/p>\n
I recently exchanged emails with yet another victim.\u00a0 She is a small business owner who contacted me with questions about several trademark applications that she had filed through a trademark filing service.\u00a0 It had been a couple of years since she the applications were filed and she didn\u2019t know what had happened with several of the trademarks.<\/p>\n
Out of the five trademark applications that the business owner had filed, two had been deemed abandoned after the owner failed to respond to easily surmountable objections raised by the US Patent and Trademark Office (the filing service allegedly didn\u2019t tell her about the objections), and one was facing an imminent deadline that the owner was unaware of.\u00a0 The remaining two trademarks had registered, but the owner was unaware that she had an obligation to file maintenance documents between years five and six of registration.<\/p>\n
Missed deadlines are not the only potential concern when business owners utilize filing service companies instead of an attorney. Other common issues include, but not limited to: (1) the description of products or services included in the trademark application was inaccurate, rendering the registration vulnerable to attack and\/or limiting its value as a tool for the owner to enforce his or her rights in the trademark against others; (2) if an availability search was conducted, it was limited to identical marks only and failed to disclose obstacles to registration; and (3) the owner filed an application for a logo without considering whether an application for a word mark would have been more appropriate.<\/p>\n
As a fellow small business owner, it\u2019s frustrating to have to tell clients that they wasted their limited funds on worthless trademark filings. In many instances, the businesses would have been better off simply filing the applications on their own.\u00a0 They may have ended up with inadequate trademark protection, but at least they would have been left with more money in their pockets.<\/p>\n
If you are a new company, a recently rebranded company, or an established company that simply hasn\u2019t gotten around to addressing trademark protection, consider talking to a legal professional about your branding.\u00a0 In most instances, a trademark attorney will not charge you for an initial consult. One big hurdle for companies is overcoming the fear around how much the filing process will cost.\u00a0 Don\u2019t let that stop you from educating yourself.\u00a0 Also, don\u2019t be afraid to shop around.\u00a0 Compare pricing, consider your comfort level with the attorneys that you speak to, and ask other business owners for their recommendations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As a trademark attorney, I\u2019ve received my fair share of cries for help from business owners who filed applications through trademark filing services to reduce their startup costs. LegalZoom and Trademarkia are two well-known companies in the industry. \u00a0They sound like a great deal.\u00a0 The companies charge a fraction of what an attorney would cost.\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1229,"featured_media":10037,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[43902],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10028","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-professional-development"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n