Law Quiz Intellectual Property
Patent
A property right granted by the government to protect a person's invention from others being able to make, use or sell the product
Trade Secret
Any formula, pattern, device, or compilation of information which has economic value to a business because it is not generally known or easily discoverable by observation and for which efforts have been made to maintain secrecy
Fair Use Doctrine
Copyrighted material may be reproduced without permission in certain cases. Amount and use must be reasonable and not harmful to copyright owner. Research
Copyright is secured automatically when the work is created. A work is "created" when it is fixed in a copy or phonorecord for the first time. A copyright can be registered with the US Copyright Office
How is a copyright obtained?
Ask a judge to issue an injunction to prevent further disclosure. File a civil complaint seeking damages for economic injury suffered. Plaintiff must prove: information alleged to be confidential provides a competitive advantage. the information is maintained in secrecy. the information was improperly acquired or disclosed by the defendant
How to Enforce Rights if Trade Secret is Stolen
Ways to protect intellectual property
Patent, trademark, copyright, and trade secret
Useful. New or novel. Non-obvious
Requirements for the subject of a patent
20 years from the date on which the application for the patent was filed
Term (Duration) of a Patent
10 years. May be renewed for an indefinite number of 10-year periods
Term (Duration) of a Trademark
Author's life plus 70 years
Term of a copyright
Indefinitely, as long as the item(s) is kept secret.
Term of a trade secret
Utility, design and plant
Types of patents
Restrict access. Lock-up the information. Mark the information "Confidential" Have any party that may come into contact with the trade secret sign a non-disclosure agreement.
Ways to protect a trade secret
Works that have not been fixed in a tangible form of expression. Listings of ingredients or contents. Works consisting entirely of information that is common property and containing no original authorship
What is not protected in Copyright?
Copyright protects "original works of authorship" that are fixed in a tangible form of expression. The fixation need not be directly perceptible so long as it may be communicated with the aid of a machine or device.
What is protected in Copyright?
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Who issues patents?
United States Patent and Trademark Office (T)
Who issues trademarks?
Intellectual Property
an original work fixed in a tangible medium of expression
Copyright
form of protection provided to the authors of "original works of authorship," including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works. Available to both published and unpublished works.
Plant
invents or discovers and asexually reproduces any distinct and new variety of plant
Utility
new and useful process, machine, article of manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof
Design
new, original, and ornamental design for an article of manufacture
Example: Cannot simply change the color or size of an object
non-obvious
Trademark
word, phrase, symbol, or design, or a combination that identifies and distinguishes the source of the goods of one party from those of others.