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Your Southgate Intellectual Property Attorney
If you are trying to protect an invention, a brand, or a creative work in Southgate, 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. The sections that follow cover what patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets protect, the filing deadlines, registration, the federal courts for Campbell County, Kentucky’s own trademark and trade secret rules, and what an infringement claim involves. These rules apply across Kentucky, and an attorney familiar with the Eastern District of Kentucky can explain what to expect there.
Your Key Federal and Kentucky Rules in One Place
- Patent claims are filed in federal court only (28 U.S.C. 1338(a)), and the six-year damages limit in 35 U.S.C. 286 makes early action important.
- Infringing a registered mark means using a reproduction, counterfeit, copy, or colorable imitation in a way likely to cause confusion (15 U.S.C. 1114(1)(a)).
- 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)).
- A federal case from Southgate goes to the Eastern District of Kentucky (28 U.S.C. 97), which sits in Ashland, Catlettsburg, Covington, Frankfort, Jackson, Lexington, London, Pikeville, and Richmond.
Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, and Trade Secrets Compared
If you have made something new and useful, such as a device, a process, a manufactured article, or a composition, a patent is the tool the statute provides (35 U.S.C. 101). The grant runs from issuance to 20 years after the application was filed (35 U.S.C. 154(a)(2)).
A trademark identifies and distinguishes goods and their source. The statute defines it as any word, name, symbol, or device, or any combination, used by a person, or which a person has a bona fide intention to use in commerce and applies to register, to identify and distinguish that person’s goods from those manufactured or sold by others and to indicate the source (15 U.S.C. 1127). A service mark does the same for services.
Writing, music, images, film, software text, and similar creative work are the subject of copyright, which subsists in original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium (17 U.S.C. 102(a)). The statute is equally clear about what is excluded: ideas, procedures, processes, systems, methods of operation, concepts, principles, and discoveries (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)).
Filing Deadlines and Damages Limits
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)).
The federal trade secret deadline is set by 18 U.S.C. 1836(d): three years from the date the misappropriation was discovered or by the exercise of reasonable diligence should have been discovered, with continuing misappropriation counted as one claim.
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).
Do not assume that a state-law claim follows the federal deadlines. Kentucky’s limitation periods and the point when a claim accrues are matters of Kentucky statutes and case law, and an attorney can check the dates for your particular claim.
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Steps That Strengthen a Claim Before It Is Needed
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)).
A Kentucky business can ask an attorney whether a state-level trademark filing with the Kentucky Secretary of State is worth adding to a federal application. The provisions are in KRS 365.561 to 365.613, and the two registrations are separate.
For copyright, protection attaches to original works fixed in a tangible medium (17 U.S.C. 102(a)), but before an infringement suit on a United States work can be instituted, preregistration or registration of the copyright claim must have been made (17 U.S.C. 411(a)). A work created on or after January 1, 1978 lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years (17 U.S.C. 302(a)).
For an invention, the patent term of 20 years runs from the date the application was filed (35 U.S.C. 154(a)(2)), so the timing of an application is worth discussing with a patent attorney.
Federal and State Courts for Intellectual Property Claims
Patent, plant variety protection, and copyright claims belong exclusively in federal court: the district courts have original jurisdiction of any civil action arising under an Act of Congress relating to patents, plant variety protection, copyrights, and trademarks, and no state court may hear the patent, plant variety protection, and copyright claims (28 U.S.C. 1338(a)). Trademark claims may also be brought in state court.
Kentucky is divided into two federal judicial districts (28 U.S.C. 97). Campbell County is in the Eastern District of Kentucky, which holds court in Ashland, Catlettsburg, Covington, Frankfort, Jackson, Lexington, London, Pikeville, and Richmond.
Kentucky 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 Southgate may also raise a claim under the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (KRS 365.880 to 365.900). Which claims fit depends on the facts.
A brand owner in Southgate may have state-law options in addition to federal ones. Kentucky’s trademark registration provisions are found in KRS 365.561 to 365.613, and the filing office is the Kentucky Secretary of State.
A lawyer can compare the federal and state routes for your situation and explain the tradeoffs.
Types of Intellectual Property Claims
Using an Invention Without Permission
A patent claim asks whether the accused product or process is covered by the patent and whether the accused party acted without authority. The forms of infringement listed in 35 U.S.C. 271(a) are making, using, offering to sell, selling, and importing.
A patent case is filed in federal district court (28 U.S.C. 1338(a)).
Confusing Similarity and Brand Protection
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.
Evidence such as first-use dates, sales records, and examples of actual confusion is easiest to gather before a dispute escalates.
Copyright Claims
For writing, images, music, or film, copyright protects the original expression fixed in a tangible medium (17 U.S.C. 102(a)) but never the underlying idea (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)).
Confidential Information and Departing Employees
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).
Documents showing who had access, and what confidentiality steps existed, are among the first things to preserve.
Injunctions and Money Damages by Type of Claim
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)).
Copyright: an infringer is liable for either the copyright owner’s actual damages and any additional profits of the infringer, or statutory damages (17 U.S.C. 504(a)). For statutory damages, the court may award a sum of not less than $750 or more than $30,000 per work as it 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.
For a misappropriated trade secret, 18 U.S.C. 1836(b)(3) authorizes an injunction against actual or threatened misappropriation, damages for actual loss and unjust enrichment or a reasonable royalty, exemplary damages up to 2 times for willful and malicious misappropriation, and reasonable attorney’s fees to the prevailing party in stated situations.
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Getting Your Records in Order
Bring a simple chronology. When was the work created, when was it first shared or sold, and when did you first notice the copying or use? Many of the deadlines on this page run from those events.
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.
For copyright, gather the work, drafts with dates, and examples of copying. For a trade secret, gather what the information is, who could see it, and what confidentiality agreements or security measures applied.
Southgate: Courts, Counties, and Getting Started
Southgate matters that reach federal court are heard in the Eastern District of Kentucky. Knowing which court you will be in matters because deadlines such as the three-year copyright and trade secret limits run regardless of the court.
See where else we help people across Kentucky in our Kentucky intellectual property guide. Our coverage in this part of Kentucky also includes Fort Thomas, Newport, and Bellevue. Injury claims follow different rules, covered on our Southgate personal injury attorney page.
Frequently Asked Questions
What can be patented?
A new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter may be patented, subject to the conditions and requirements of the patent statute (35 U.S.C. 101).
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)).
Do I have to register a copyright before I sue?
For a United States work, yes. No civil action for infringement of the copyright may be instituted until preregistration or registration of the copyright claim has been made (17 U.S.C. 411(a)), with a provision for cases where registration was refused.
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)).
Where does the federal court for Southgate hold court?
The Eastern District of Kentucky holds court in Ashland, Catlettsburg, Covington, Frankfort, Jackson, Lexington, London, Pikeville, and Richmond (28 U.S.C. 97).
Can a trademark claim be brought under Kentucky law?
Possibly. Kentucky 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.
Do deadlines differ for different kinds of intellectual property?
Yes. Copyright and federal trade secret claims each have a three-year period, measured differently (17 U.S.C. 507(b); 18 U.S.C. 1836(d)), and patent damages are limited to six years before the complaint (35 U.S.C. 286).
How do I know whether I need a patent, trademark, copyright, or trade secret protection?
It depends on what you are protecting: an invention (35 U.S.C. 101), a name or logo that identifies goods or services (15 U.S.C. 1127), original creative work (17 U.S.C. 102(a)), or confidential information (18 U.S.C. 1839(3)).
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Questions about a patent, a trademark filing, a copyright registration, or a trade secret are exactly what an initial conversation is for. Use the form to get matched with an attorney who can answer them for your case.
