Legal Question in Business Law in California

Re: copyright a trade name

For the trademark, it's quite a bit more involved that just filling out a form, but you can find more info. on both of these topics at my website at http://www.incorporatecalifornia.com and at these official U.S. government websites: http://www.uspto.gov/main/faq/index.html / http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/

Re: copyright a trade name

It's possible for a novice to complete a trademark application on line. Be prepared to read all the instructions patiently and understand them.

Determine the two-digit international product/service category your product belongs under in advance.

If you are trademarking words only, be sure they are not just common dictionary words but also have some distinctive feature - for example, "Brass Tacks" is part of an everyday expression and might not be accepted as a trademark, but "Bronze Tacks" is less usual and more likely to be accepted, especially if your product is breakfast cereal or beer, and not nails and tacks.

If your trademark includes graphics, colors, special fonts, etc. you're more likely to be able to register everyday words, because the other aspects make it distinctive, but in order to submit a trademark application including art, you need to have it prepared in an accepted electronic file format - I don't remember which they take, maybe .tif or .jpg or ???

Note that the USPTO charges $325 per application submitted, whether it's fatally flawed or not.

Copyrights are somewhat easier, but again thre is a limit on what material is subject to copyright - generally, original works of artistic expression that have been reduced to a permanent medium. Traditionally, copyright was intended to protect authors, artists, composers, photographers and the like. Certainly, designs such as the look of the Monopoly game board can be copyrighted. Whether your product as features subject to copyright protection I cannot tell, but maybe.

One first step you might consider is to buy a paperback book on protection of artistic works and/or trademarks. Publishers such as Nolo Press publish and distribute widely through bookstores and also on line. These books are not a substitute for hiring an intellectual-property attorney, but can prevent mis-steps by a do-it-yourself applicant.