Copyright Law in Jacksonville, FL

Did you know that Jacksonville is the home of Firehouse Subs?

According to The Coastal, this restaurant chain now has 900 stores across the United States. Reaching this level of success doesn’t happen without strong branding and enforcing your IPs. No matter the scale of your goals, you can use the information below to potentially do the same for your company.

What Is Copyright Registration?

Copyright registration offers the author of a piece of work in Jacksonville, Florida some protection from those who try to steal their idea.

A novel creation receives copyright protection when it becomes fixed into a tangible form. Copyright law dictates how to establish this ownership. Additionally, it explains how to register intellectual property or defend against infringement.

Copyright registration is a type of public record for ownership. A piece of work doesn’t require copyright registration for protection under the US copyright law. However, you should register your product in Jacksonville, FL with the help of a copyright lawyer, as this can offer you several unique advantages:

• Protects your work against the importation of copies that infringe the registration. Your registration will be recorded with the United States Customs and Border Protection.
• If your work is already registered in the United States, you can proceed with an infringement lawsuit; otherwise, you will have to register it first.
• The IP owner can seek damages and attorney fees if a copyright registration happens within three months of publication (or prior to an infringement claim).
• If a copyrighted work becomes registered outside of the three-month time frame, you may seek actual damages that you lost.
• Copyright registration will identify each public record of its existence. This action puts the copyright protection into public notice for the piece of work that you’ve created and/or own.

What Is a Trademark?

A trademark is a word, symbol, design, or phrase that distinguishes you from another company. Service marks are a type of trademark that a company will use when providing services to the public. Technically, trademarks are a form of intellectual property. It also forms part of the company’s brand, even if they no longer use it.

Here are some of the components that established Jacksonville, FL business people and brand owners often trademark:

• Logos
• Symbols
• Product packages
• Name of the business
• Name of the product or service
• Designs

The Florida Department of State takes care of applications for trademark registration from Jacksonville. The fees that business owners need to pay depend on their business structure. For instance, these are the current costs for different types of companies:

• $35 for corporations

• $100 for LLCs

• $50 for general partnerships

• $965 for limited partnerships

How Long Does It Take to Register a Trademark and Copyright?

If you avoid a non-fixable mistake, the USPTO will still need over a year to register your trademark. There are six phases that need to happen before they can issue the certificate. At any point, you may need a Jacksonville attorney to help during any of these stages:

• Determining if a trademark is the appropriate intellectual property to pursue

• Preparing to complete the process

• Finishing the application and submitting it to the federal government

• Responding to issue letters from the examining attorney

• Receiving the certification or denial of your mark

• Maintaining the right to your trademark

The U.S. Copyright Office doesn’t have as complex a process to maneuver through. But, that fact doesn’t mean there can’t be frustrating delays. At their fastest, registration specialists can handle an application in a month. The case for most is an average of 3.6 months.

What’s the Difference Between a Trademark and a Copyright?

The value of your Jacksonville, FL business depends on the assets it owns. It’s important to note that the most valuable assets are not always physical or financial. Your intellectual property counts as assets too. Due to this, if people use those assets without your permission, you can file a lawsuit for infringement.

While trademarks and copyrights protect intellectual property, they cover two different aspects. Copyright registration protects artistic and literary works, such as videos and books. A trademark registration protects brand components. This can be a jingle, a logo, or a mascot of your organization.

Take, for example, if you own a magazine publishing company. You would trademark the logo and the name of your company. However, you would also place copyright protection on all the magazines that you have published.

Work With an Experienced Jacksonville, Florida Copyright Lawyer

Do you have an idea that needs protection under intellectual property law? If so, complete the registration process as soon as possible. There is always the risk that someone else might beat you to it. This eventuality can create complications when the time comes to defend IP rights claims.

An experienced Jacksonville, FL copyright lawyer can help you uncover if anyone else has registered a similar idea. If your concept closely resembles another, it might get rejected. Consequently, it is better to find this early than to go through the process only to get denied later. In addition, an intellectual property lawyer will help you to draft critical documents. Or, they can determine the value of the intellectual property that you own.

An intellectual property lawyer also assesses the quality of the assets. They will also look at the number of assets licensed under your name or your business in Jacksonville, FL. This evaluation can help to maximize the entire value of all intangible assets that your company has.

Are you ready to tap into our network of Jacksonville copyright attorneys  that can guide you through every step? We can even help you connect with an attorney across Florida state lines. 

Submit a request online or call us today at (866) 345-6784 to get in touch with an experienced lawyer in your area!