Do I Need a Trademark for My New Illinois Business?

Trademarks fall under intellectual property, along with patents and copyrights. Intellectual property is a vague, often complex legal area for business owners. Do you need a trademark? What do you have to do to get a trademark? Is it expensive? Do you need a business law attorney? These business owner questions – along with others – may be swirling around in your head. A trademark generally applies to branding, symbols, business names, sounds, colors, and logos. 

Copyrights apply to creative works, and patents to innovations and inventions. While they are different from one another, they are all meant to keep others from benefiting from your work or ideas. While it might sound odd to trademark a color, the orange color on the packaging of Reese’s peanut butter cups is trademarked and instantly recognized.

If you think you need a trademark for your new business, speak to a skilled Naperville, IL business law attorney from Gierach Law Firm. Attorney Denice Gierach assists her clients in developing sound strategies to grow their businesses and preserve their business culture through multiple family generations.  

How Could a Trademark Benefit Your Business?

A trademark tells consumers who is behind what they are buying, whether that is an individual or a company. For example, an apple with a bite taken out is easily identifiable to consumers as an Apple product. Trademarks convey a message about your brand and can also accomplish the following:

• A trademark protects the goodwill of your business, which is your reputation.
• A trademark gives your business more protection than a business registration.
• Having a federally registered trademark confers the presumption of ownership, giving you an advantage in court because a lawsuit will be pursued in federal court.
• A trademark allows you to exclude others from using your trademark to sell counterfeit goods; if they continue to use your trademark, you can be compensated for losses due to the unauthorized use.
• As a trademark holder, you have protection throughout all 50 states, allowing you to freely expand your business in other states without the necessity of obtaining a business registration in each state.

How Do You Obtain a Trademark?

If you have determined that a trademark is the type of protection you need, your first step will be to select a mark, keeping in mind that not every mark is legally protectable. The format of the mark must be identified, i.e., a sound mark, a stylized/design mark, or a standard character mark. The goods or services the mark will apply to must clearly be identified. Similar trademarks must be searched for in the USPTO database to ensure your proposed trademark is not already registered. You must then identify your filing basis, choosing from the following:

• Commerce basis means you are currently using your mark in commerce with your goods and services.
• Intent-to-use basis means you intend to use your mark with your goods and services in the near future.
• Foreign registration basis means you own a foreign registration for the same mark from your country of origin.
• Foreign application basis means you own a foreign application for the same mark that was filed within six months of your U.S. application for the same mark. 

The next step is to set up a USPTO.gov account and prepare and submit your trademark application. The application fee is a processing fee and will not be refunded even if your trademark application is unsuccessful. Once your application is filed, the waiting begins. You can check your trademark application status through the Trademark Status and Document Retrieval system. 

Contact a Naperville, IL Business Law Attorney for Trademark Assistance

Like many decisions related to a new business, seeking a trademark and the subsequent trademark process can benefit from knowledgeable legal assistance. Attorney Denice Gierach combines her education as a lawyer, a CPA, a master’s degree in management, and her own experience as a business owner to help business owners succeed. Choosing a highly skilled Naperville, IL business law attorney from Gierach Law Firm is the best step you can take to ensure your business prospers now and in the future. Contact Gierach Law Firm at 630-228-9413.