HOW A TRADEMARK ATTORNEY CAN HELP YOU by ResearchCopyright.com

While you do not need a trademark attorney to file a trademark application, many people do retain such an attorney as they are familiar with trademark matters and are able to search the database of the Trademark Office and are able to figure if a trademark application will pass or fail, and how to fix that problem if they think it will fail inspection.

The USPTO defines a Trademark Attorney as "an individual who is a member in good standing of the bar of any United States court or the highest court of any State and who is registered to practice before the Office."

The trademark attorney can help with the filing of your trademark application and help you figure out which goods or services to file the trademark in conjunction with.

But, trademark attorneys do more than just help you file your trademark application. They can help you tweak your trademark idea to make it even more distinct.

They also register the trademark with the USPTO and can stay on top of the various filings and registrations involved in keeping a trademark "alive" once it has been registered, such as by filing the Section 8 and Section 9 forms every few years. The trademark attorney can also help in matters such as trademark infringement cases, either where you are litigating against someone who has infringed upon your trademark or someone is accusing you of infringing on theirs.

Trademark attorneys can also file the paperwork needed to give international protection to your chosen trademark under the Madrid Protocol so that it can receive such protection as soon as possible.

Trademark attorneys can negotiate in terms of licensing agreements with other companies. They will be able to negotiate to get you the best deal for you and your trademark in any kind of negotiations.

They may also help in cases of trademark dilution, in which a company creates a product with the same name as your product or uses the same name of your company. This might cause brand confusion, and even if it does not, it could still tarnish the good name of your brand.

Another thing that some people do not often think about is this: The law firm you use most likely has paper that contains that office's name in the letterhead. If you ever need a Cease & Desist written, nothing gets the point across that you mean business better than a letter whose first words read something along the lines of "The Law Offices of..." This has the added benefit of letting the trademark infringer know that you have already retained a trademark attorney and that litigating is not the least of your worries.

On that note, a trademark attorney is still a lawyer, and as such, your trademark attorney can represent you in court if any infringement lawsuits ever make it to court.

So you see, even though you are not required to retain a lawyer for filing your trademark, it is so much better to have one from the beginning because they will have been there from the beginning and know your trademark and your business as well as you do, but they will also have the know-how of an attorney and be able to bat for you if you need legal representation.