Raleigh, North Carolina Businesses Use Cohn Legal for Trademark Services

* Cohn Legal, PLLC is not located in Raleigh and yet it can assist businesses from North Carolina in registering a federal Trademark because trademarks are governed under federal law.

Cohn Legal is a startup and trademark legal firm providing service to clients in Raleigh, North Carolina, throughout the United States, in Europe, and Israel. Cohn Legal attorneys operate with the singular goal of acting as your legal consigliere, continuously striving to provide you with the best legal advice and strategies to protect your trademarks and intellectual property.

Top 8 Questions Raleigh Businesses Have About Obtaining a Trademark

How do I register a federal trademark?

To obtain a federally registered trademark, you must submit a trademark application to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO. The examining attorney at the USPTO will then evaluate the distinctiveness of your desired trademark and search the USPTO database to identify any trademarks which may be too similar to yours and would result in a conflict. If the examining attorney approves the application, it will proceed to the Official Gazette for a 30-day period of “publication.” During that time, any third party with a legitimate claim against the filing can submit an “opposition” to the application. If no oppositions are submitted, then your trademark application will be cleared for final registration.

How many sales do I need to make in order to satisfy the “in commerce” requirement?

The USPTO has not yet provided an exact number of sales needed to satisfy their in-commerce requirement. Instead, the they required that a “bona-fide” number of sales must have been made. Use your judgement to determine what a bona-fide number of sales is. A token sale of one t-shirt to a friend wouldn’t count, but selling 100 t-shirts to multiple parties in different states most likely would.

What is a “specimen” and when do I need one?

A specimen is an illustration of how you are actually using the trademark in commerce. A specimen may consist of a picture of a product label, a clothing tag, packaging material, or anything else that bears the product name or logo. If your trademark is used in conjunction with a service, rather than a product, specimens may include brochures, flyers, advertisements, etc.

What is the difference between a trademark and a service mark?

A trademark is a word, logo, slogan, sound, and/or design that when attached to a product, enables a consumer to identify the company which produces the good. A service mark is a term used more specifically to refer to word, logo, slogan, sound, and/or design that when attached to a service, enables a consumer to identify the company which produces the service.

Do I need to conduct a trademark search before filing my application?

There is no law or rule mandating that you must first conduct a trademark search before submitting a trademark application, it is undoubtedly the smart thing to do. The purpose of the trademark search is to uncover any sufficiently similar trademarks, which may prevent the admission of your trademark.

What is TEAS?

The USPTO provides applicants with the opportunity to submit a trademark application through the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS). The purpose of TEAS is to allow applicants to easily submit trademark applications online and pay the required fees online.

The TEAS Plus filing option costs $225 per class of goods/services, the TEAS Reduced Fee filing option costs $275 per class of goods/services, and the TEAS Regular Filing option costs $400 per class of goods/services.

Should I file a trademark application as an individual or as a business entity?

How you choose to file a trademark application is entirely up to you. There are some advantages if you file as a business entity. For example, you won’t have to re-assign ownership of the trademark to someone else if you sell the business.

Also, note that if you file as an individual, then you may have your name, mailing address, and country of citizenship appear on search engines in connection with your trademark. Therefore, filing as a business entity is advisable if you want to keep your personal details more private.

How long does the trademark application process take?

After submitting the trademark application, you can expect to hear back from the USPTO within 3 to 8 months. Depending on whether your application was accepted or there are issues to address, it can take another few months to a year before the process is done. Working with a trademark attorney can make the entire process go more smoothly and quickly.

Additional Information on Trademark Registration for Raleigh Businesses

Raleigh is a thriving city that has become a hot spot for entrepreneurs in recent years. If you’re starting a new business in Raleigh, then you may be focused on product development, marketing plans, hiring employees, and about a million other tasks. One task you don’t want to overlook however is trademark registration. Trademark registration may seem like a minor issue that you can take care of later on. But failing to register your trademark early on can have devastating consequences for your new business.

Consider this scenario: Lucian has been working for a prominent house painter in the Raleigh area for several years and has decided to strike out on his own. He decides to exclusively use low-VOC and environmentally friendly paints and supplies. He calls his new company Fresh Air House Painting.

Excited to get started Lucian dives in. He creates a logo for his company and has it painted on the side of his van. He creates a website, flyers, and postcards to mail out to Raleigh homeowners. Lucian’s sister asks him if he’s considered contacting a trademark attorney, but he say that he’ll get to that after his business is making a profit.

Lucian’s new business is going great. He’s just 6 months in and he’s already thinking about expanding his crew. However, he’s about to get some troubling news.

What Lucian doesn’t realize is that a prominent paint manufacturer is currently developing a low-VOC paint that has yet to hit the market. However, they’ve already trademarked the name Freshest Air Paints for themselves.

Lucian receives a cease-and-desist letter from the paint manufacturer asking him to stop operating under the name Fresh Air Paint because it’s too similar to their trademark and may cause confusion in the market. Now Lucian must close his business, rebrand, and reopen under a new name. Plus, they may take legal action.

A situation like this can be avoided if you hire a trademark attorney and conduct a proper trademark search when you’re ready to start your business. Call Cohn Legal today for a complimentary trademark consultation and make sure your brand and business is protected.

Trademarks Services for Raleigh Businesses

• Trademark Search Services
• Trademark Application Filing
• Trademark Infringement Defense
• Trademark a Name
• Trademark a Phrase
• Trademark Cease and Desist Letters
• Trademark Office Action Response
• Trademark Abandonment