I am looking to start a clothing and apparel line and i was wondering if the name i have came up with
is being used in a different form aside from clothing, can i still use the same name ?
also what should i look in to acquiring a Trademark Or A Copyright application?
UPDATE :
From what i was reading i wasn't able to find or locate any sort of Trademark information on the sites of the business that came up on my initial search
Thank you so much for those who answered, it really helped in pointing me in the right direction of what i must do
IN fashion your trademark is considered the centerpiece so make sure you handle it with great care. No one can answer your question specifically but in general if the two marks are in completely different sandboxes it should not be a problem. For example, the market is not confused as between Delta Airlines and the Delta that makes the faucets. But some famous mark holders can make dilution arguments. For example, I don't care what you are selling, if you try and call it the "McWhatever" expect to hear from McD's lawyers.
That said, your trademark will be one of if not the most important and valuable business assets you will have and you will ultimately spend more money in support if it than you will anywhere else (advertising, marketing, PR, branding, packaging, etc.). So you owe it to your business and yourself to make sure you handle this properly upfront and the first order of business always starts with a proper and comprehensive clearance.
Whenever you endeavor into investing in a trademark it is very important that you conduct the proper clearance due diligence upfront and before you start spending any money in support of it or submit an application to the USPTO. In the US, this means searching under both federal (USPTO) as well as common law because trademark rights stem from use in this country NOT registration. This means that acquiring a federal registration does not necessarily mean that you are not infringing on another's intellectual property. See the link below for a brief article from Fox Business News on the importance of the due diligence process and our overview guide.
I suggest that you consult with a lawyer in private and discuss your objectives in more detail. You can start by calling around to several for a free phone consultation, get some insights then pick the best fit to work with.
Best regards,
Frank
Natoli-Lapin, LLC
A brand name for a line is generally covered by a trademark.
The issue centers around whether your brand name would cause a likelihood of confusion in the market place as to the source of the goods. It is possible to have a conflict with goods that are not clothing. One past court decision held that a brand name for women's cologne infringed a brand name for scarves. The court noted that the products were both sold on the first floor of department stores and that there were some manufacturers who made both scarves and cologne. Since a consumer could reasonably think the cologne could come from the same source as the scarves, there was a likelihood of confusion. The relation between clothing and the other goods needs to be considered.
How much money are you investing in your product line? How much money will it cost you if you have to change your name later? This should help you deciding to consult an intellectual property lawyer.
The name for your merchandise would be a trademark, not a copyright. It is not unusual for a trademark search to reveal another user of the mark. Your question did not say if the other mark was a registered U.S. trademark. If it is, then the trademark examiner will look to see if there is any likelihood of confusion between your mark and the other, giving the benefit of the doubt to the other mark. You should take your specific problem to a trademark attorney for assistance in determining the likelihood of confusion issue before filing.
Where the goods/services of one trademark is very different from the other, to the point where there is a low chance of confusion between the marks, you'd be set. Of course, it would make a lot of sense for a lawyer to conduct a trademark clearance search. That would turn up any same or similar brand names for all types of goods/services, and then they should give you a recommendation as to whether similar names for similar goods/services would be risky or not.
Hello.
This is a trademark issue. The question about permissible use of a trademark is always about whether or not there would be a "liklihood of confusion" by the consumer between the first trademark holder's products/services and your products. Generally speaking, trademark law will permit similar trademarks to co-exist, so long as they are each being used on products/services that are quite different from one another, and/or are being sold in different markets or to different types of consumers. These really are fact-based situations - we'd need to understand what particular name you're considering in order to have an opinion about whether it would be a problem for you or not.
Yes, as long as the other use is not famous, you can use the name for an apparel line. However, I would strongly suggest having a trademark attorney conduct a clearance search and clear the mark for your use and registration. Then, if appropriate, you would file an application to register the mark in the US Patent and Trademark office as a Trademark for your clothing and apparel line.
It is my first instinct to say yes, but I want to qualify that. The reservation is that there is a possibility that the t-shirts deal with the same subject matter as the company. The threshold test for infringement is whether a reasonable cross section of ordinary consumers would be confused by you placing your mark on the T-shirt that the T-shirt is coming from the competing source. It is worth checking with an attorney if you think the subject matter of the T-Shirt is related to the services stated in the trademark classification.
