Bergen County, NJ Trademark Attorney
Guiding NJ clients through the trademark process
Trademark protection is crucial to businesses that depend on an identifying aspect to distinguish their goods from another’s. Trademark protection takes some effort to achieve. Most people go through the same process once they have prepared a trademark application. To satisfy the legal standards of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, it is best to have quality legal support. If you need a knowledgeable attorney with many years of IP experience, contact The Law Offices of Richard E. Novak, LLC for an initial consultation.
Filing the application
The first step for anyone hoping to pursue trademark protection on any level is to meet with legal representation that can assess their trademark and help them decide whether it is worth pursuing. The Law Offices of Richard E. Novak, LLC will conduct a thorough search on your behalf to ensure that your application does not infringe on another party’s work and the U.S Patent and Trademark Office will grant the protection. Once it is clear that your trademark is unique to your product, we will file the trademark application.
Examination of your trademark
It takes a bit of time for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to start the process of examining your trademark because of the volume of requests and the limited staff. They will take great care in scrutinizing your application. The examining attorney will share his or her opinion through what is called an “office action” or by communicating with your attorney. By conducting right due diligence before filing an application, most trademark requests are granted. Other times, they will pass with a few requested changes. If there are any issues with the trademark, you have 6 months to provide a response.
Publication in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Gazette
The next step in the process of obtaining a trademark is called “publication for opposition.” If your application is approved, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office will publish your trademark in the official gazette. Once published, anyone who opposes has 30 days to speak up and could extend the process to 90 days allowing for negotiation. An opposition is quite rare as your attorney and the attorney at the U.S. Patent and Trademark office has performed due diligence when searching for conflicts.
Notice of allowance
With no delays or opposition, an official Notice of Allowance will be issued by the office and we will file a Statement of Use. The final trademark certificate should arrive a few weeks after the issuance of the Notice of Allowance. At this point, the full trademark protection is in effect.
Maintenance of your trademark
In general, the government has a “use it or lose it” policy regarding trademarks. You have to continuously notify the government of your use of the trademark and that it is for commercial use. At the 5-year mark, we will file an affidavit of continued use and an affidavit of incontestability. At the 10-year mark after the issuance and every 10 years after, we will file affidavits of continued use, protecting your trademark for as long as you use it.
Contact our Bergen County trademark law firm
Our firm is honored to be a legal resource for clients who need to protect their property from infringement. If you have a symbol that deciphers your goods from another company’s, you need to protect your mark through obtaining trademark protection. It may be crucial to your business to have an identifiable mark. If so, you need to protect your company from others who may use your commercial identity to confuse your prospective customers. If you need guidance from an experienced intellectual property law firm, contact The Law Offices of Richard E. Novak, LLC for a consultation.