Experienced Daytona Beach, Florida and Reading, Pennsylvania area Attorneys Working To Protect Your Intellectual Property
Serving clients throughout Central Florida and Central Pennsylvania, the law firm of Sandman & Lankford, PLLC counsels and represents independent contractors and businesses with concerns regarding intellectual property law, also known as IP law. This can include legal matters surrounding everything from trade secrets, to written content and photographs, to graphics, logos, music, website content, video or film and beyond.
Intellectual property usually originates as an idea, but it’s never too early to begin protecting your ideas and the related products and services that may generate profits for you and your company.
When you partner with the law firm of Sandman & Lankford, PLLC, our Daytona Beach-headquartered intellectual property lawyers provide sound and comprehensive legal advice and other useful IP resources to clients who need help regarding trademarks, patents, non-compete agreements, trade secrets, and copyright issues. We take the time to fully understand and thoroughly investigate your concerns, but our talented team of IP attorneys will act swiftly, strategically and decisively to protect your legal and intellectual property rights.
If you need help with intellectual property protection, or if you need counsel or legal representation regarding a particular intellectual property dispute, don’t hesitate to call the law firm of Sandman & Lankford, PLLC immediately. Our Daytona Beach and Reading area IP lawyers will bring the experience and knowledge that your case demands to negotiations, trials, and appeal hearings.
Providing Legal Help and Representation to Protect Your Copyright or Trademark
The United States Copyright Office oversees copyrighting, while the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) oversees other forms of intellectual property like a patent or trademark.
The owner of a copyright – the author or the party that has purchased the work and the legal rights attached to it – has the right to control the publication and reproduction of creative works. Copyrights may be issued for content including books, musical compositions, articles, written website content, graphics and photographs, paintings, architectural drawings, and computer programs.
According to the USPTO, trademarks are defined as “words, names, symbols, sounds or colors that distinguish goods and services from those manufactured or sold by others and to indicate the source of the goods.” So, you may seek out a trademark for a company logo, slogan, a company name or even a color. For example, Tiffany & Co. has trademarked the iconic robin’s egg blue hue that it uses for its branding.
Patents are secured for inventions and creations, such as machines, proprietary processes and other novel inventions that have some sort of utility or usefulness.
As your business partner, the law firm of Sandman & Lankford, PLLC will help guide you through the process of acquiring ownership rights and then registering the trademark, patent or copyrighted material that your business requires.
In central Florida or Central Pennsylvania, when you have a trademark to register, or if you are involved in any legal dispute over intellectual property, obtain skilled legal assistance from an experienced intellectual property lawyer. Call Attorneys Melody Lankford and Lori Sandman for legal help for your business.
Intellectual Property FAQ: What’s the Difference Between Usage Rights and Exclusive Rights?
When it comes to copyrighted or trademarked material, you may acquire or grant various rights to or from another party, typically for a fee. Usage rights are typically licensed or assigned to a third party who is granted permission to use protected material in a limited capacity. For instance, your company may own the copyright to a photograph and you may opt to grant usage rights that allow a magazine to publish that photograph in an upcoming issue of the publication.
Our legal team can help to draft an intellectual property contract if you opt to hire an independent contractor or another third party to create content on your behalf. We can draft a purchase agreement so you can be sure that you are acquiring appropriate rights to the content in question.
Intellectual Property FAQ: What’s Considered Fair Use? And What Does It Mean for My Business?
We also tackle cases of copyright infringement and other IP infringement claims, which may arise when a piece of intellectual property is used without your permission and the usage falls outside of the realm of fair use.
Fair use doctrine refers to a very narrow scope of usage for intellectual property, such as written content or images. IP laws allow for the usage and reproduction of images or portions of written content for the purpose of critique and criticism, news reporting, research or teaching. When intellectual property usage falls under the realm of fair usage, there is no need to get permission from the copyright holder. You are also not required to pay the copyright holder to use the content in a manner that is considered fair use.
Of course, it’s common to encounter a dispute over whether a particular usage is considered fair use. Our lawyers can offer insight as to whether a specific situation involves fair use or constitutes a violation of your intellectual property rights.
In cases where another person infringes upon your rights, we will issue cease and desist letters, in addition to making demands for compensation when appropriate. In situations where the matter cannot be settled out of court, our legal team will help you file a lawsuit in an attempt to seek justice and fair compensation.
Our Daytona Beach lawyers prefer negotiation to litigation, but we relentlessly advocate for our clients and strategically strive to address legal matters in a way that will maximize your chances of seeing the justice you deserve in the courtroom and beyond.
Trust Your Company’s Case to a Top Florida and Pennsylvania Intellectual Property Lawyer
The Daytona Beach intellectual property lawyers at the law firm of Sandman & Lankford, PLLC represent and serve businesses throughout Volusia, Brevard, Flagler, Orange, and Seminole counties in Pennsylvania, and the greater Berks County area in Florida.
The founder of one of Central Florida’s most well-regarded business law firms, Attorney Melody Lankford and Attorney Lori Sandman take great pride in their ability to provide a comfortable, friendly setting for clients and potential clients who wish to discuss their business and legal concerns.
Unlike many lawyers, this legal team understands that you have a busy schedule and will go out of their way to offer appointments outside of traditional business hours. They will not only set appointments around clients’ schedules, but they will also come to your place of business for meetings.
If you need help with a legal issue involving intellectual property, Attorneys Lori Sandman and Melody Lankford of the law firm of Sandman & Lankford, PLLC are here to provide a consultation on your case. Call today at 386-206-2898. Se Habla Español.
