Trademark/copyright

[Rodd]

Hi Shannon, My husband and I have come up with several designs we would like to put on shirts, sweatshirts, etc. There is a "phrase" with each of the designs. We have a name for the apparel company. My question(s) is this: Do we Trademark the apparel company name(i.e.  ABC Apparel Co.) and can assume every design under that company is protected or do we do a trademark of company and copyright each individual design as each is unique and stands alone? Any assistance you can provide is greatly appreciated. Just looking for direction on where to start. Thank you

[Vincente]

Dear Leslie,

Yes, you are correct - you'd trademark the name and logo, if applicable, for the line itself(i.e. whatever's going to appear on the tags, labels, etc.) The designs on the garments themselves are protected under copyright as anything is when it comes into creation. The phrases are not eligible for copyright protection but if they're integrated into the design, you'd be filing the entirety anyway. You may want to look into registering them.

Registration is recommended for a number of reasons. Many choose to register their works because they wish to have the facts of their copyright on the public record and have a certificate of registration. Registered works may be eligible for statutory damages and attorney's fees in successful litigation. Finally, if registration occurs within 5 years of publication, it is considered prima facie evidence in a court of law. Here's a link to a circular about copyright basics: http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ1.pdf

Now I'd be remiss not to touch on the trademark issue further.

Prior to investing your time, money & effort into a name, it is strongly advised that comprehensive research be conducted to ensure that the name you're interested in is truly available. This entails searches of the pending & registered Federal and State trademark files as well as the US National Common-Law files. Hope that helps! I wish you much success & happiness in all your ventures! Please let me know if you have any other questions I can help you with.

Warmest regards,

Shannon Moorehttp://www.tmexpress.comhttp://tmexpress.blogspot.com

Twitter @TradeMarkExpres