On June 19, 2017, the Supreme Court issued an opinion in Matal v. Tam, 137 S. Ct. 1744 (2017), striking down the disparagement clause in the Lanham act that had been in place since 1946. The clause reads that no mark will be registered that is a “matter which may disparage or falsely suggest a […]

A security interest is a property interest created by agreement between parties or by operation of law over assets in order to secure the performance of an obligation.  This typically arises in the context of a creditor and debtor, wherein the creditor extends monies to the debtor and wishes to secure preferential rights in whatever […]

There is no such thing as a global trademark, really.  Trademark rights are territorial.  This means that your securing trademark rights, either via use or registration, in one country does not necessarily provide you with trademark rights in another country.  There are limited exceptions to this rule surrounding the territorial scope of trademark rights, such […]

Put simply, a trademark is a necessary building block to any franchise.  We have represented franchisors and franchisees across a whole range of trademark matters.  We have helped franchisors select, clear, apply for, register and enforce their trademark.  We have been there when a franchisor chooses to, or is forced to, rebrand its trademark. There […]

Trademark owners, at one time or another, must consider whether to license certain rights in its trademark to others.  The reason to do so is simple: monetize the trademark rights in the form of licensing fees.  While a trademark licensing agreement may come in many forms (e.g. Merchandise License Agreement, Software License Agreement, etc.), it […]

Clients, existing and prospective alike, regularly ask: Do I really need a trademark registration or can common law rights be enough.  Typically, we then discuss the benefits of a trademark registration on the Principal Register of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), including: nationwide priority presumption of ownership in court presumption of validity […]