legal final exam chapter 5 patents Flashcards
any property resulting from intellectual, creative processes- the products of an indviidual’s mind
intellectual property
information contained in books and computer files is
intellectual property
a distinctive word, symbol, sound, or design that identifies the manufacturer as the source of particular goods and distinguishes it products from those made or sold by others
trademark
statutory protection of trademarks and related property is provided at the…
federal level by the Lanham Act of 1946
this act was enacted in part to protect manufacturers from losing business to rival companies that used confusingly similar trademarks
the lanham act
in 1995, congress amended the lanham act by passing the federal trademark dilution act, which allowed trademark owners to
bring suits in federeal court for trademark dilution
where famous trademarks are protected from certain unauthorized uses of the marks, regardless of a showing of competition or a likelihood or confusion
dilution
under the TDRA, to state for a trademark dilution, a plaintiff must prove the following
- plaintiff owns a famous mark that is distinctive
- defendant has begun using a mark in commerce that allegedly is diluting the famous mark
- similarity between the defendant’s mark and the famous mark gives rise to an association between the marks
- association is likely to impair the distinctive of the famous mark or harm its reputation
a famous mark may be diluted not only by the use of an identical mark but also by the use of a
similar mark, provided that it reduces the value of the famous mark
trademarks may be registered with the state or with the
federal government
to register for protection under federal trademark law, a person must file an
application with the U.S patent and trademark office in washington D.C, a
registration of a trademark with the U.S. patent and trademark office gives notice on a nationwide basis that the trademark belongs exclusively to the
registant
whenever someone else uses the trademark in its entirety or copies it to a substantial degree, intentionally or unintentionally, the trademark has been
infringed (used without authorization)
to succeed in a lawsuit for trademark infrigement, the owner must show that the defendant use of the mark created a liklihood of
confusion about the origin of the defendant’s goods or services
The owner doesn’t have to show that the person who copied their trademark did it on purpose, or
that the trademark was officially registered (though having it registered does prove when it started being used).
the remedy most commonly granted for trademark infringement is an
injunction to prevent further infringement
under the lanham act, a trademark owner that successfully proves infringement can recover actual damages,
plus the profits that the infringer wrongfully received from the unauthorized use of the mark
the central objective of the lanham act is to
reduce the likelihood that consumers will be confused by similar marks
only trademarks that are deemed sufficiently distinctive from all competing trademarks will be
protected
a trademark may not be
derogatory, or falsely suggest a connection with persons, living or dead, beliefs or national symbols
fanciful, arbitrary, or suggestive trademarks are generally considered to be the
most distinctive trademarks, bc they are normally taken from outside the context of the particular product
strong marks provide the best means of
distinguishing one product from another
fanciful trademarks include invented works like