{"id":6824,"date":"2020-10-21T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-10-21T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/blog\/?p=6824"},"modified":"2021-11-22T15:19:19","modified_gmt":"2021-11-22T21:19:19","slug":"infringement-how-to-protect-yourself-and-your-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/blog\/2020\/10\/21\/infringement-how-to-protect-yourself-and-your-business\/","title":{"rendered":"Infringement: How to Protect Yourself and Your Business"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>At some point, many business owners face the threat of infringement and are challenged on their use of a business or product name.&nbsp;For some it is simply an accident, and the \u201cfix\u201d may be as easy as changing a name.&nbsp;But what should you do when confronted with a cease-and-desist letter or lawsuit? Read our blog as we discuss infringement and how to protect yourself and your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4><strong>Types of infringement<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.law.cornell.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Legal Information Institute<\/a> at Cornell Law School defines infringement as \u201ca violation, a breach, or an unauthorized act.\u201d There are different types of infringement depending on the situation. In a commercial contract, an infringement occurs when one of the contracting parties breaches the contract terms. In intellectual property, an infringement relates to an unauthorized use of any copyrighted material or patented invention. This can be trademark, patent, or copyright infringement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4><strong>How to protect yourself and your business<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>In many cases, infringement on another is done unwittingly. However, regardless if the infringement is an accident, the law is very clear. Your first course of action should be to contact a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">knowledgeable attorney<\/a> who can help you understand the law and your rights. Your attorney will be able to advise you on whether&nbsp;a response is required.&nbsp;Because the use of someone else\u2019s intellectual property (like a logo) can be costly, don\u2019t ignore the claim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4><strong>Situations that can generate an infringement claim<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Selecting a name for your company that already has a registered <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Trademark\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">trademark<\/a> \u2013 Before you set up your company, check the secretary of state\u2019s website or Google to make sure the name is available.<\/li><li>Advertising your products by comparing them to someone else\u2019s products \u2013 There are strict rules on how you can use someone else\u2019s products in your advertising so make sure you understand them.<\/li><li>Using names for your products that are very similar to well-known names of similar products \u2013 Certainly most people know not to produce a running shoe and put the Nike\u00ae logo on it, but you can also run afoul of intellectual property laws by producing a running shoe and putting \u201cNite\u201d on it.&nbsp;<\/li><li>Using photos or content you didn\u2019t create in your business \u2013 While there are some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.copyright.gov\/fair-use\/more-info.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fair uses<\/a> and some free content, don\u2019t assume that something on the internet can simply be re-used without permission.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Taking the time to research and understand infringement can save you time, money, and headaches down the road.  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Barna, Guzy &amp; Steffen<\/a> has an outstanding team of <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/business-law\" target=\"_blank\">corporate and business<\/a> law professionals available to talk to you about your specific needs. <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/contact\" target=\"_blank\">Contact us today<\/a>. We look forward to hearing from you<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At some point, many business owners face the threat of infringement and are challenged on their use of a business or product name.&nbsp;For some it is simply an accident, and the \u201cfix\u201d may be as easy as changing a name.&nbsp;But what should you do when confronted with a cease-and-desist letter or lawsuit? Read our blog as we discuss infringement and how to protect yourself and your business. Types of infringement The Legal Information Institute at Cornell Law School defines infringement as \u201ca violation, a breach, or an unauthorized act.\u201d There are different types of infringement depending on the situation. In a commercial contract, an infringement occurs when one of the contracting parties breaches the contract terms. In intellectual property, an infringement relates to an unauthorized use of any copyrighted material or patented invention. This can be trademark, patent, or copyright infringement. How to protect yourself and your business In many cases, infringement on another is done unwittingly. However, regardless if the infringement is an accident, the law is very clear. Your first course of action should be to contact a knowledgeable attorney who can help you understand the law and your rights. Your attorney will be able to advise you on whether&nbsp;a response is required.&nbsp;Because the use of someone else\u2019s intellectual property (like&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6829,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7,17,1],"tags":[71,87,70,85,84,69,72,88,86],"coauthors":[49],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Infringement: How to Protect Yourself and Your Business - Barna, Guzy &amp; Steffen, LTD.<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What should you do when confronted with a cease-and-desist letter or lawsuit? 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