Los Angeles Intellectual Property Lawyer

Intellectual property is the foundation of almost every facet of the entertainment industry, spanning film and television production, live and recorded music, book publishing, and talent agreements.

Are you a producer, actor, musician, author, merchandiser, publicist, cinematographer, or playing another role in the entertainment industry? If so, a business lawyer can strategize with you to determine the best way to seek protection for your intellectual property or negotiate on your behalf to actualize its maximum value. 

Below are some of the services we regularly provide to our entertainment industry clients:

• Trademark Registration
• Copyright Registration
• Brand Extensions Through Licensing and Distribution Agreements
• Negotiating and Drafting Publishing Agreements
• Drafting Film, Television and Music Licensing Agreements

A trademark is a phrase, word, logo, design, or symbol that appears on a product to identify its source or brand and to distinguish it from similar products in the market. Service marks are similar, but they are used instead to identify the source of services and to distinguish those services from similar services in the market. In most cases, people refer to both as trademarks. 

An intellectual property attorney can guide clients through the steps of the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) applications in order to register a trademark in Los Angeles. With regard to trademarks, they can help you:

• Determine whether you can legally protect your chosen trademark
• Choose the appropriate basis on which to file your trademark application
• Prepare and file a robust trademark application with the USPTO
• Select an example to demonstrate how your trademark would be used
• Communicate with and respond to questions from USPTO trademark examining attorneys
• Explain the rights that go along with your registered trademark
• Guide you on best practices for enforcing your trademark rights
• Defend you against trademark challenges brought by others
• Ensure you remain up to date with your trademark registration

A trademark lawyer can also represent your best interests before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB). The TTAB is the administrative board that hears and rules on adversarial proceedings in which a trademark is opposed after a publication or party seeks to cancel an existing trademark registration.

Copyright registration allows the creator of an original literary, musical, dramatic, or artistic work to seek protection for their intellectual property. 

The categories of intellectual property for which copyright law provides protection include novels, poems, films, songs, musical scores, paintings, screenplays, and scripts. 

With regard to copyright matters, an IP lawyer in Los Angeles can help you:

• Complete and submit the required application forms and documentation to the U.S. Copyright Office
• Determine whether to submit hard copies or electronic copies of your work
• Respond to requests from the U.S. Copyright Office or Library of Congress with regard to hard-copy deposits
• Explain the benefits of holding a copyright in your work
• Enforce your copyright against potentially infringing works
• Defend against allegations of copyright infringement
   

When a person or entity owns a copyright, they have the exclusive intellectual property laws and rights to monetizing and using that work, including making copies, selling copies, licensing the work, transferring ownership to the work, and creating derivative work based largely on the original.

Through most licensing agreements, one party, called the licensor, will grant rights to another party, called the licensee, to use the licensor’s intellectual property in exchange for royalty payments from the licensee. Distribution agreements are similar, in that they create a contractual relationship between a supplier and a distributor. 

With regard to brand extensions through licensing and distribution agreements, the most common scenarios with which intellectual property law firms in Los Angeles can assist include using:

• An artist’s song in a feature film
• A character or trademark on clothing or other merchandise
• Text from a short story to create a screenplay

Under these circumstances, the distributor contractually agrees to acquire merchandise from the supplier and then sell those products according to the agreement’s terms. Usually, the terms involve selling goods or products in a specified geographic area.

In addition to trademark, copyright, and brand extension matters, we also regularly represent clients in intellectual property transactions. These include acquisition, sale of IP assets, and drafting or enforcing non-disclosure or confidentiality agreements. 

Schedule a free case consultation today to see how our detail-oriented approach at The Hollywood Lawyer can advance your brand or business.