First Amendment

Copyright Trolls Update

By Sharon Adams | Aug 2, 2016

A previous article discussed how Getty Images, Inc. and other image licensing companies routinely send out ...

By Sharon Adams | Jul 12, 2016

In today’s competitive marketplace a successful business product will likely draw competition, and competitors may try ...

By Sharon Adams | Jun 29, 2016

Trademarks are an important business asset. Trademarks have different aspects. A trademark can function as a ...

By Sharon Adams | May 6, 2016

A California Social Purpose Corporation is formed pursuant to Corporations Code sections 2500 et seq. Social Purpose Corporations are ...

By Sharon Adams | Dec 23, 2015

It is surprising to read a Federal Circuit case on patent claim construction, delving deeply into ...

By Sharon Adams | Dec 11, 2015

Certain large companies, including Getty Images , routinely send out demand letters claiming copyright infringement based ...

By Sharon Adams | Nov 5, 2015

Since 2012, California has created two new corporate structures: (1) the social purpose corporation; and (2) ...

By Sharon Adams | Sep 28, 2016

People often ask about the extent of patent and trademark applications needed to protect the intellectual property ...

By Sharon Adams | Oct 12, 2016

Every trademark application filed with the United States Patent& Trademark Office (PTO) must identify the goods ...

By Sharon Adams | Dec 7, 2016

Apple Inc. is known for the number of patents it owns. Apple doesn’t just own patents, it ...

By Sharon Adams | Jan 25, 2017

Companies continue to see the value of design patents. Nike, Inc. is ranked 5th in the ...

By Sharon Adams | Feb 16, 2017

A trademark application filed with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office contains required information about the ...

By Sharon Adams | Apr 14, 2017

The Constitutional right to obtain a patent is subject to certain limitations, including that an inventor ...

By Sharon Adams | Jul 11, 2017

A rose by any other name is still a rose, but what about a Unicorn Latte? ...

By Sharon Adams | Aug 23, 2017

Subject matter patentability defines what types of inventions may receive patent protection, and favors physical objects. ...

By Sharon Adams | Sep 25, 2017

Many entrepreneurs and small businesses start their business by offering goods or services on the internet ...

By Sharon Adams | Oct 19, 2017

California voters approved Proposition 64, legalizing recreational marijuana use, subject to certain restrictions. It is now ...

By Sharon Adams | Nov 20, 2017

Emerging businesses generally take a close look at expenditures, and may view trademark registration as a ...

By Sharon Adams | Apr 18, 2018

The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) anticipates that utility patent number 10,000,000 will issue sometime ...

By Sharon Adams | Oct 8, 2015

By: Sharon Adams May 2014 The U. S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) commemorated the issuance ...

By Adams Law Office | Apr 20, 2018

Recently there have been many inquires about patenting a recipe. Many of these inquires are related ...

By Sharon Adams | Oct 8, 2015

On October 8, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in California affirmed a previous ruling by a federal ...

By Sharon Adams | May 4, 2018

Design patents can be an effective method of protecting the look of a product or brand. ...

By Sharon Adams | Oct 10, 2015

Professional engineers (PEs) often work as consultants, rather than employees. If a PE is an employee, ...

By Sharon Adams | Oct 28, 2015

It is the policy of the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) that trademarks may not be warehoused, ...

By Sharon Adams | Nov 5, 2015

Corporate law requires corporations to maximize profits to shareholders. This absolute requirement may expose corporate leadership ...

By Sharon Adams | Dec 10, 2018

Products that are used to smoke marijuana received U.S. federal trademark registration in November 2018. Yet ...

By Sharon Adams | Feb 6, 2019

FIRST AMENDMENT PROTECTS DISPARAGING TRADEMARKS A few years back a rock band tried to trademark its ...

By Sharon Adams | Apr 29, 2019

Mongols Nation Motorcycle Club Keeps Its Trademark The First Amendment may not come to mind when ...

By Sharon Adams | Jul 30, 2019

Three In a Row for First Amendment Protection of Trademarks Trademark law prohibits registration of a scandalous or ...

By Sharon Adams | Oct 12, 2019

It often happens that a business chooses a descriptive trademark for its brand name or products. ...

By Sharon Adams | Nov 12, 2019

Rush to Register Trademarks Is On! More and more independent merchants are opening businesses and using ...

By Sharon Adams | Feb 28, 2020

Presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg was challenged over his use of Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) with women from ...

By Sharon Adams | Dec 14, 2020

Every trademark application filed with the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) must show use ...

By Sharon Adams | Jan 12, 2021

Businesses often want to trademark a phrase or slogan that is commonly used in their business. ...