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Your Charlestown Intellectual Property Attorney
If you are trying to protect an invention, a brand, or a creative work in Charlestown, or you have been accused of infringing someone else’s, you probably want plain answers about deadlines, courts, and what each kind of protection covers. Federal statutes set most of them, so many answers can be checked. This page covers the deadlines, the definitions that decide whether something is protected, the federal district court for Washington County, and the Rhode Island rules that sit next to the federal ones. Talking with an attorney who works in the District of Rhode Island can turn these general rules into a plan for your matter.
Deadlines and Courts: The Short Version
- Who can be liable for patent infringement? Anyone who, without authority, makes, uses, offers to sell, or sells a patented invention in the United States, or imports it (35 U.S.C. 271(a)).
- Even an unregistered mark can be protected against false designation of origin, through a civil action by anyone who believes they are likely to be damaged (15 U.S.C. 1125(a)(1)).
- Register first, sue second. No civil action for infringement of the copyright in a United States work can be instituted until registration has been made or refused in the way the statute provides (17 U.S.C. 411(a)).
- Trade secrets get a federal civil action when the secret relates to a product or service used in, or intended for use in, interstate or foreign commerce (18 U.S.C. 1836(b)(1)), filed in federal district court (18 U.S.C. 1836(c)).
- Federal district: for Washington County, the District of Rhode Island under 28 U.S.C. 120, holding court in Providence.
Four Kinds of Intellectual Property and What Each Covers
Inventions are the domain of patent law. The categories the statute names are processes, machines, manufactures, and compositions of matter (35 U.S.C. 101), and the patent term ends 20 years from the filing date of the application (35 U.S.C. 154(a)(2)).
Under 15 U.S.C. 1127, a trademark is any word, name, symbol, or device, or a combination, that identifies and distinguishes one person’s goods from another’s and indicates their source, and a service mark performs that function for services.
Copyright protects original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression (17 U.S.C. 102(a)), such as literary, musical, dramatic, and pictorial works, motion pictures, sound recordings, and architectural works. It never extends to an idea, procedure, process, system, method of operation, concept, principle, or discovery (17 U.S.C. 102(b)).
Unlike a patent, a trade secret is kept private. The federal definition requires reasonable secrecy measures and independent economic value from not being generally known or readily ascertainable through proper means (18 U.S.C. 1839(3)).
Deadlines for Intellectual Property Claims
Three years is the copyright limit in 17 U.S.C. 507(b), measured from when the claim accrued. Registration comes first under 17 U.S.C. 411(a), so the clock and the registration process can overlap.
Trade secret claims under federal law must be filed within three years of discovery, or of when reasonable diligence would have revealed the misappropriation, and continuing misappropriation is one claim (18 U.S.C. 1836(d)).
Six years is the number to know in patent cases: infringement more than six years before the complaint cannot be recovered on (35 U.S.C. 286).
State-law claims, such as a claim under the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (R.I. Gen. Laws chapter 6-41) or a state trademark claim, have their own rules on limitation periods and on when a claim begins to run. Those are set by Rhode Island statutes and court decisions, so the dates should be checked by an attorney rather than assumed from the federal deadlines.
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Federal and Rhode Island Trademark Registration
For a trademark, the owner of a mark used in commerce may request registration on the principal register by paying the prescribed fee and filing an application and a verified statement with the Patent and Trademark Office (15 U.S.C. 1051(a)(1)). A person with a bona fide intention to use a mark in commerce may also apply (15 U.S.C. 1051(b)(1)).
Rhode Island also has its own trademark registration. A state filing is made with the Rhode Island Department of State under R.I. Gen. Laws chapter 6-2, is separate from the federal register, and does not replace a federal application.
A copyright owner cannot file an infringement action on a United States work before registration has been made (17 U.S.C. 411(a)), although a refusal of registration can also open the door to suit if the Register of Copyrights is notified and served with the complaint.
A patent application starts the 20-year term (35 U.S.C. 154(a)(2)), and the invention must fit a statutory category such as a process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter (35 U.S.C. 101). An attorney can review both points before you file.
Federal District Courts and Where They Sit
The choice of court depends on the type of claim. Patent and copyright cases can only be filed in federal district court (28 U.S.C. 1338(a)), a federal trade secret action is filed in federal district court (18 U.S.C. 1836(c)), and trademark claims can go to federal or state court.
There is only one federal district in Rhode Island. The District of Rhode Island hears federal cases from Washington County and holds court in Providence (28 U.S.C. 120).
Rhode Island Law Alongside Federal Law
The federal civil action for trade secrets (18 U.S.C. 1836(b)(1)) is filed in federal district court (18 U.S.C. 1836(c)), and a dispute from Charlestown may also raise a claim under the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (R.I. Gen. Laws chapter 6-41). Which claims fit depends on the facts.
Trademark protection has a state layer as well. A state trademark registration in Rhode Island is filed with the Rhode Island Department of State under R.I. Gen. Laws chapter 6-2, and it is separate from federal registration on the principal register (15 U.S.C. 1051).
Which claims to bring, and in which court, is a strategy question for an attorney who can read the documents.
The Basics of Each Type of Claim
Claims That a Patent Is Being Infringed
The basic patent infringement rule is in 35 U.S.C. 271(a): without authority, making, using, offering to sell, or selling a patented invention in the United States, or importing one, during the patent term.
Damages are limited to infringement within the six years before the complaint (35 U.S.C. 286).
Disputes Over Names, Logos, and Brands
Two federal provisions do most of the work in trademark cases: 15 U.S.C. 1114(1)(a) for registered marks and 15 U.S.C. 1125(a)(1) for misleading uses of any word, term, name, symbol, or device, registered or not.
State trademark registration in Rhode Island is filed with the Rhode Island Department of State under R.I. Gen. Laws chapter 6-2, separate from the federal statutes.
Disputes Over Writing, Images, Music, and Film
In a copyright case, the first questions are whether the work is protected at all under 17 U.S.C. 102(a) and whether what was copied was protected expression rather than an idea or method excluded by 17 U.S.C. 102(b).
A civil action must be commenced within three years after the claim accrued (17 U.S.C. 507(b)).
Protecting Confidential Business Information
The Defend Trade Secrets Act lets the owner of a misappropriated trade secret sue when the secret relates to a product or service in interstate or foreign commerce (18 U.S.C. 1836(b)(1)). Whether the information qualifies depends on the definition in 18 U.S.C. 1839(3).
The Uniform Trade Secrets Act (R.I. Gen. Laws chapter 6-41) may provide state-law claims alongside the federal action, with their own deadlines.
Damages, Injunctions, and Other Relief
In a patent case, the statute directs an award of damages adequate to compensate for the infringement and never less than a reasonable royalty, plus interest and costs, with increases of up to three times possible in the court’s discretion (35 U.S.C. 284). Injunctions are available in accordance with the principles of equity (35 U.S.C. 283).
For trademark violations, the Lanham Act allows injunctions on terms the court considers reasonable (15 U.S.C. 1116(a)) and allows recovery, subject to equity, of the defendant’s profits, the plaintiff’s damages, and the costs of the action (15 U.S.C. 1117(a)).
The copyright statute offers two routes to money relief: actual damages and profits (17 U.S.C. 504(b)) or statutory damages of not less than $750 or more than $30,000 for infringements of any one work (17 U.S.C. 504(c)(1)).
The registration date can decide whether statutory damages and attorney’s fees are available at all. Section 412 of the copyright statute bars them for infringement commenced before registration, subject to a three-month window after first publication.
Trade secrets: under the federal statute a court may grant an injunction to prevent actual or threatened misappropriation, award damages for actual loss and for unjust enrichment, or impose liability for a reasonable royalty, and if the misappropriation was willful and malicious, award exemplary damages of not more than 2 times the damages awarded, and attorney’s fees in stated circumstances (18 U.S.C. 1836(b)(3)).
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Getting Your Records in Order
Write down a short timeline before the call: when the work or invention was made, when it was first shown to anyone, and when you learned of the problem. The federal deadlines above are measured from dates like these.
Patent matters go faster with drawings, lab notes, patent or application numbers, and a list of who has seen the invention. Trademark matters go faster with the mark itself, samples of its use, and any registration documents.
Bring the original work and dated drafts for a copyright issue, and a description of the information, access records, and confidentiality measures for a trade secret issue.
A Note on Charlestown and the Federal Court
Deadlines and definitions are the same across Rhode Island, and the courthouse is not. A federal case from Charlestown is filed in the District of Rhode Island, and getting the timeline for that court from an attorney who practices there is a sound first step.
If your matter is an injury claim instead of an intellectual property dispute, see our Charlestown personal injury page. If your matter involved another town in the area, see our pages for South Kingstown, Narragansett, and Westerly. To compare options across the state, visit our Rhode Island intellectual property directory.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a patent case be brought in Rhode Island state court?
No. Patent claims are within the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal district courts (28 U.S.C. 1338(a)), so a case from Charlestown is filed in the District of Rhode Island.
Can I register my business name or logo as a trademark?
A word, name, symbol, or device used to identify and distinguish goods and indicate their source is a trademark (15 U.S.C. 1127), and the owner of a mark used in commerce may request federal registration (15 U.S.C. 1051(a)(1)).
How long do I have to sue for copyright infringement?
A civil action must be commenced within three years after the claim accrued (17 U.S.C. 507(b)).
How long do I have to bring a trade secret claim under federal law?
Three years after the misappropriation is discovered or, by the exercise of reasonable diligence, should have been discovered, and a continuing misappropriation counts as a single claim (18 U.S.C. 1836(d)).
Which federal court covers Charlestown?
The District of Rhode Island (28 U.S.C. 120).
Do federal deadlines apply to Rhode Island state-law claims?
Not automatically. Rhode Island state-law claims have their own limitation periods and accrual rules, set by Rhode Island statutes and court decisions, and an attorney should check them.
Why does timing matter in an intellectual property dispute?
Because federal statutes set fixed limits, such as three years for copyright (17 U.S.C. 507(b)) and for federal trade secret claims (18 U.S.C. 1836(d)), and six years of look-back for patent damages (35 U.S.C. 286), waiting can cost rights and money.
Can I protect a logo or slogan?
A word, name, symbol, or device used to identify and distinguish goods or services and indicate their source can be a trademark or service mark (15 U.S.C. 1127).
Get Started With an Attorney in Charlestown
An intellectual property matter is easier to handle with someone reading the documents alongside you. Submit the form to be connected with an attorney who can go over your work, the deadlines, and the court for Washington County.
