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Your Nome Intellectual Property Attorney
Ideas, brands, and creative work are only as protected as the steps taken to secure them and the speed of the response when someone copies them. If your business or work is based in Nome, the federal and Alaska rules on patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets are written down, and knowing them early helps. This page covers the deadlines, the definitions that decide whether something is protected, the federal district court for Nome Census Area, and the Alaska rules that sit next to the federal ones. The facts of your situation decide which area of law controls, and an attorney who practices in federal court can sort that out quickly.
Quick Answers on Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, and Trade Secrets
- A patent case is a federal case. The district courts have original jurisdiction of any civil action arising under an Act of Congress relating to patents (28 U.S.C. 1338(a)), and infringement damages are limited to the six years before the complaint (35 U.S.C. 286).
- 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)).
- Copyright covers expression, not ideas: original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium (17 U.S.C. 102(a)), but never an idea, procedure, process, system, or method of operation (17 U.S.C. 102(b)).
- Federal trade secret claims must be brought within 3 years after the misappropriation is discovered or should have been discovered with reasonable diligence (18 U.S.C. 1836(d)).
- Which court? A case from Nome that belongs in federal court is filed in the District of Alaska, which holds court in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, Ketchikan, and Nome.
Four Kinds of Intellectual Property and What Each Covers
A patent protects an invention. Whoever invents or discovers a new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter may obtain a patent, subject to the conditions and requirements of the patent statute (35 U.S.C. 101). The term is 20 years from the date the application was filed (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.
A copyright question begins with whether the work is an original work of authorship fixed in a tangible medium (17 U.S.C. 102(a)) and whether what was copied was expression rather than an idea, system, or method (17 U.S.C. 102(b)).
If the valuable thing is confidential know-how, the question is trade secret. Both elements in 18 U.S.C. 1839(3) must be present: reasonable measures to keep the information secret, and independent economic value from its not being generally known.
How Long Do You Have to Bring a Claim?
The copyright deadline is three years after the claim accrued (17 U.S.C. 507(b)). An owner who has not registered should treat registration as part of the first steps, since no infringement action on a United States work can be instituted before it (17 U.S.C. 411(a)).
Discovery drives the trade secret clock. A civil action under 18 U.S.C. 1836(b) may not be commenced later than three years after the misappropriation is, or by reasonable diligence should be, discovered (18 U.S.C. 1836(d)).
For patent damages, the look-back is six years from the complaint (35 U.S.C. 286), which is separate from the 20-year patent term measured from the filing date (35 U.S.C. 154(a)(2)).
State-law claims, such as a claim under the Alaska Uniform Trade Secrets Act (Article 8 of AS chapter 45.50) or a state trademark claim, have their own rules on limitation periods and on when a claim begins to run. Those are set by Alaska statutes and court decisions, so the dates should be checked by an attorney rather than assumed from the federal deadlines.
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Registration Steps for Trademarks and Copyrights
Federal trademark registration is available both to owners of a mark already used in commerce (15 U.S.C. 1051(a)(1)) and to a person with a bona fide intention, in good faith, to use a mark in commerce (15 U.S.C. 1051(b)(1)), through an application and a verified statement filed with the Patent and Trademark Office.
Federal registration is not the only route. Alaska’s trademark registration provisions, AS 45.50.010 and following sections, provide for a state filing with the Alaska Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing that operates separately from the federal register.
Copyright exists without a filing, but a lawsuit about a United States work requires preregistration or registration first (17 U.S.C. 411(a)). The standard term for a work created on or after January 1, 1978 is the life of the author and 70 years after the author’s death (17 U.S.C. 302(a)).
The application date controls the length of patent protection, which ends 20 years after filing (35 U.S.C. 154(a)(2)), so planning the filing is part of protecting the invention.
Federal District Courts and Where They Sit
Federal law fixes the forum for most intellectual property claims: exclusive federal jurisdiction over patents and copyrights (28 U.S.C. 1338(a)), original federal jurisdiction over Defend Trade Secrets Act claims (18 U.S.C. 1836(c)), and concurrent state jurisdiction over trademarks.
Alaska constitutes one federal judicial district, the District of Alaska (28 U.S.C. 81A), so a federal case from Nome is filed there. The court holds court in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, Ketchikan, and Nome.
Alaska Law Alongside Federal Law
Alaska has a trade secret statute of its own, the Alaska Uniform Trade Secrets Act (Article 8 of AS chapter 45.50). A trade secret dispute from Nome can involve that statute, and the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act adds a civil action in federal court for a trade secret related to a product or service used in interstate or foreign commerce (18 U.S.C. 1836(b)(1), (c)).
Federal trademark law under 15 U.S.C. 1114 and 1125 sits alongside Alaska’s registration system, which runs through the Alaska Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing under AS 45.50.010 and following sections. The two operate separately.
A lawyer can compare the federal and state routes for your situation and explain the tradeoffs.
What Kinds of Intellectual Property Cases Come Up?
Claims That a Patent Is Being Infringed
Patent disputes turn on the patent’s claims and on conduct listed in 35 U.S.C. 271(a), namely making, using, offering to sell, selling, or importing a patented invention without authority.
Both patent owners and people accused of infringing should collect the patent number, product samples, and dates early.
Trademark and Unfair Competition Claims
Brand disputes often involve both a registered mark and one that has never been registered. Registered marks are protected against likely confusion under 15 U.S.C. 1114(1)(a), and 15 U.S.C. 1125(a)(1) covers false designation of origin more broadly.
Evidence such as first-use dates, sales records, and examples of actual confusion is easiest to gather before a dispute escalates.
Copyright Claims
A copyright claim starts with an original work of authorship fixed in a tangible medium (17 U.S.C. 102(a)), and it is limited to expression: the idea, procedure, process, system, or method of operation is not protected (17 U.S.C. 102(b)).
Federal district courts have original jurisdiction over copyright claims (28 U.S.C. 1338(a)).
Disputes Over Trade Secrets
Trade secret cases often turn on whether the owner took reasonable measures to keep the information secret and whether it has independent economic value from not being generally known, the two elements of 18 U.S.C. 1839(3).
A continuing misappropriation is treated as a single claim for the federal deadline (18 U.S.C. 1836(d)).
Remedies in Intellectual Property Cases
For patents, 35 U.S.C. 284 sets the damages floor at a reasonable royalty and lets the court increase damages up to three times the amount found or assessed, and 35 U.S.C. 283 allows injunctions according to the principles of equity, on terms the court considers reasonable.
Trademark: courts can grant injunctions according to the principles of equity to prevent the violation of the rights of a registrant or a violation of section 1125(a), (c), or (d) (15 U.S.C. 1116(a)), and when a violation is established the plaintiff is entitled, subject to the principles of equity, to recover the defendant’s profits, any damages sustained by the plaintiff, and the costs of the action (15 U.S.C. 1117(a)).
Copyright damages can be measured by the owner’s actual damages and the infringer’s attributable profits (17 U.S.C. 504(b)), or by statutory damages between $750 and $30,000 per work as the court considers just (17 U.S.C. 504(c)(1)).
Delay in registering can cost more than time. Infringement that starts before the effective date of registration generally cannot support statutory damages or attorney’s fees, with the exception in 17 U.S.C. 412 for registration within three months after first publication.
In federal trade secret cases the court can enjoin actual or threatened misappropriation, award damages for loss and unjust enrichment or a reasonable royalty, and, for willful and malicious misappropriation, exemplary damages up to 2 times the damages awarded (18 U.S.C. 1836(b)(3)).
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Preparing for a First Conversation
Before you talk to anyone, list the key dates in order. Copyright and federal trade secret deadlines run from accrual and discovery, and patent damages look back from the complaint, so a clean timeline shows where you stand.
Inventors should collect drawings, notes, and application numbers, and brand owners should collect the mark, examples of use, and any registration papers, before the first conversation.
Copyright matters call for the original work, dated versions, registration papers, and side-by-side examples of the copying. Trade secret matters call for a description of the information, a list of who had access, and the confidentiality measures that existed.
What to Know About Cases From Nome
If you are protecting or defending intellectual property in Nome, a case that belongs in federal court is filed in the District of Alaska. An attorney who works in that court regularly can explain how its schedule and practices affect the deadlines above.
For the full list of Alaska communities we serve, see our Alaska intellectual property page. Nearby communities we serve include Kotlik, Emmonak, and Deering. Injury claims follow different rules, covered on our Nome personal injury attorney page.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as patent infringement?
Without authority, making, using, offering to sell, or selling a patented invention in the United States, or importing one into the United States, during the term of the patent (35 U.S.C. 271(a)).
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)).
What kinds of work does copyright cover?
Original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression (17 U.S.C. 102(a)), including literary, musical, dramatic, and pictorial works, motion pictures, sound recordings, and architectural works.
What is a trade secret?
Information the owner has taken reasonable measures to keep secret and that derives independent economic value from not being generally known to, and not being readily ascertainable through proper means by, another person (18 U.S.C. 1839(3)).
How many federal districts does Alaska have?
Alaska has one federal judicial district: the District of Alaska (28 U.S.C. 81A).
Can a trademark claim be brought under Alaska law?
Possibly. Alaska law may provide trademark claims of its own alongside the federal ones, and which apply depends on the mark and the facts. An attorney can explain the options.
What are the main deadlines in intellectual property cases?
Copyright: three years from accrual (17 U.S.C. 507(b)). Federal trade secrets: three years from discovery (18 U.S.C. 1836(d)). Patent damages: no recovery for infringement more than six years before the complaint (35 U.S.C. 286).
How do I keep information as a trade secret?
Take reasonable measures to keep it secret, because that is one of the two elements of the definition (18 U.S.C. 1839(3)), and consult an attorney about what measures are reasonable for your business.
Talk to an Attorney About Your Nome Matter
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 Nome Census Area.