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Trademark Infringement
A trademark infringement occurs when someone else
uses your registered mark or a confusingly similar mark on the same or
closely related goods and/or services in the U.S. In other words, any
person or entity who uses in commerce any reproduction, counterfeit,
copy or imitation of your mark to sale, offer to sale, distribute, or
advertise goods or services in such a way as to cause consumer
confusion, mistake or deception, without your permission, has infringed
upon your trademark rights.
Federal law protects against this kind of conduct,
which may lead to loss of sales and damage to your reputation. You are
not entitled to recover profits or damages unless the acts were
committed with knowledge that the use would cause confusion or
deception. Innocent acts will enable you to receive an injunction to
stop any future use of an infringing manner.
When infringement is proven, you may recover the
infringer’s profits, any damages you sustained as well as the cost of
the legal action. The court may award you treble or triple the actual
damages you sustained for injury for lost sales and business reputation.
You may recover the amount of the infringer’s profits which were
unjustly obtained, along with reasonable attorney fees.
It is important to note that it is your
responsibility to police and enforce the legal rights of the obtained
trademark through an attorney. The USPTO will not act as a watch dog
over your mark. Once you have received certified registration, you need
to publicly display your mark with the federal registration symbol ® or
“Registered in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office” with your mark. If no
notice is displayed, you may forfeit your right to prosecute an
infringer. No profits or damages can be recovered unless the infringer
had actual notice of the registered mark.
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