One of our main practice areas here at Prevost, Shaff, Mason & Carns, PLLC is business development and strategy, and our passion is to help our clients plan for the future and protect their accomplishments in every aspect of their lives.
When developing a successful business, one important facet is to create a strong, recognizable brand to further enhance the value of the company today and in the future if and when it sells. As such, we wanted to provide you with the ten best reasons to apply for a registered trademark:
- Discourages others from using confusingly similar marks in the first place by making the mark easy to find in a trademark availability search.
- Protects against registration of confusingly similar marks.
- Treats the mark as if used nationwide as of the application date, which is vital in a system in which first use wins.
- Provides nationwide notice of ownership of the mark as of the registration date.
- Serves as evidence of the validity and exclusive ownership of the mark for the goods and services listed in the registration.
- Grants the right to use the ® symbol when the mark is used for the goods and services listed in the registration.
- Grants the right to sue in federal court and, in certain cases, obtain treble damages and attorney fees.
- Entitles you to certain statutory damages in the case of counterfeiting.
- Provides a basis for foreign registrations, facilitating protection of your marks worldwide as business expands.
- Empowers US Customs and Border Protection to block imports that infringe the mark or are counterfeits.
Should you wish to discuss applying for a registered trademark, please give our office a call at (972) 239-6200 or e-mail me at olivia@psmclaw.com.