Legal Question in Business Law in Illinois

Similar not for profit idea/different name

We have a daughter with Down Syndrome and have 'tossed' around an idea of opening a center in our area to provide information to the community, new parents, etc. We have recently discovered a center in Hoffmans Estates that does just that. (My grattitude to the lady who actually followed through) Would it be wrong to open a center with a different name (named after our daughter)that provides the same services as the first? I do not want trouble before we even get started......if we can proceed at all. Thank you for your time.


Asked on 8/30/06, 1:27 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
David K. Staub Staub Anderson LLC

Re: Similar not for profit idea/different name

If there was something wrong with using the same idea as someone else, we would only have one fast food hamburger chain, one commercial airline, and one television network.

Some "ideas" are translated into patents and protected by federal statute; others are treated with great care and are protected as trade secrets. However, an idea such as you are describing generally does not fall into any protected category, and starting a similar center would not be "wrong". Of course, you need to make sure that you don't misuse any written or visual materials that they have produced since those would be likely protected by copyright law.

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Answered on 8/30/06, 2:00 pm

Re: Similar not for profit idea/different name

Nothing wrong at all. In fact, now you have a working model for your center. However, from a practical standpoint, you may want to locate some distance from Hoffman Estates. Good luck, sounds like a marvelous cause.

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Answered on 8/30/06, 2:14 pm


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