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Your Norfolk Intellectual Property Attorney
If you are trying to protect an invention, a brand, or a creative work in Norfolk, 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 Madison County, Nebraska’s own trademark and trade secret rules, and what an infringement claim involves. Deadlines in intellectual property cases run on fixed dates, so learning them early usually helps more than trying to catch up later.
Quick Answers on Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, and Trade Secrets
- 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.
- Federal trademark registration is available to the owner of a mark used in commerce or to a person with a bona fide intention to use one (15 U.S.C. 1051(a)(1), (b)(1)).
- How long does a copyright last? For works created on or after January 1, 1978, the life of the author plus 70 years (17 U.S.C. 302(a)), with different counts for joint works and works made for hire.
- 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 Norfolk goes to the District of Nebraska (28 U.S.C. 107), which sits in Lincoln, North Platte, and Omaha.
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 brand is protected as a trademark when it functions to identify and distinguish goods from those of others and to indicate the source of the goods (15 U.S.C. 1127). The same statute defines a service mark for the source of 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.
Filing Deadlines and Damages Limits
For copyright infringement, the statute sets three years from when the claim accrued (17 U.S.C. 507(b)), and registration or a refusal of registration must come before suit on a United States work (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)).
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).
Claims under Nebraska law carry their own limitation periods and their own rules for when the clock starts, which are different questions from the federal deadlines in this section. Have the dates checked before relying on any of them.
Protecting your work in Norfolk? Get matched with an attorney now.
Registering and Protecting Your Rights
The Lanham Act sets two routes to the principal register: use in commerce (15 U.S.C. 1051(a)(1)) and a bona fide intention to use (15 U.S.C. 1051(b)(1)). Each requires an application, a verified statement, and the prescribed fee.
A Nebraska business can ask an attorney whether a state-level trademark filing with the Nebraska Secretary of State is worth adding to a federal application. The provisions are in the Trademark Registration Act, Neb. Rev. Stat. 87-126 and following sections, and the two registrations are separate.
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.
Inventors should keep the 20-year term measured from filing in mind (35 U.S.C. 154(a)(2)), and should confirm early with an attorney that the invention falls within 35 U.S.C. 101.
The Federal Court for Madison County
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.
The federal court for Norfolk is the District of Nebraska, which covers all of Nebraska (28 U.S.C. 107) and holds court in Lincoln, North Platte, and Omaha.
Nebraska Law Alongside Federal Law
Owners of confidential information in Norfolk can look to two sources: the Trade Secrets Act (Neb. Rev. Stat. 87-501 to 87-507) and the federal action in 18 U.S.C. 1836(b), which requires a connection to interstate or foreign commerce and has its own three-year deadline (18 U.S.C. 1836(d)).
Federal trademark law under 15 U.S.C. 1114 and 1125 sits alongside Nebraska’s registration system, which runs through the Nebraska Secretary of State under the Trademark Registration Act, Neb. Rev. Stat. 87-126 and following sections. The two operate separately.
Choosing between state and federal claims, or bringing both, is something an attorney should decide after reviewing what happened and what proof exists.
Common Intellectual Property Claims
Patent Disputes
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.
Damages are limited to infringement within the six years before the complaint (35 U.S.C. 286).
Trademark Infringement and Brand Disputes
Even without registration, the Lanham Act allows a civil action against anyone who uses in commerce a word, term, name, symbol, or device likely to cause confusion or deceive about affiliation, connection, or origin (15 U.S.C. 1125(a)(1)), brought by a person who believes he or she is or is likely to be damaged.
State trademark registration in Nebraska is filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State under the Trademark Registration Act, Neb. Rev. Stat. 87-126 and following sections, separate from the federal statutes.
Protecting Creative Work
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)).
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).
Federal district courts have original jurisdiction over these actions (18 U.S.C. 1836(c)).
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).
The trademark remedies are set out in 15 U.S.C. 1116(a), which gives courts the power to grant injunctions, and 15 U.S.C. 1117(a), which lets a plaintiff recover defendant’s profits, damages, and costs once a violation is established.
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.
Relief under 18 U.S.C. 1836(b)(3) includes an injunction, compensatory damages or a reasonable royalty, exemplary damages of up to 2 times for willful and malicious misappropriation, and reasonable attorney’s fees to the prevailing party when the statute’s conditions are met.
Have questions about a patent, trademark, copyright, or trade secret? Connect with an attorney.
Documents and Dates That Help
Start with the basics: what you created or invented, who was involved, and when each step happened. Dates matter because the deadlines described above run from events such as accrual of a claim, discovery of a misappropriation, or the filing of an application.
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.
Intellectual Property Matters in Norfolk and Madison County
If you are protecting or defending intellectual property in Norfolk, a case that belongs in federal court is filed in the District of Nebraska. An attorney who works in that court regularly can explain how its schedule and practices affect the deadlines above.
Our Nebraska intellectual property hub brings together the state’s rules and every city page in one place. Related city pages in this region: Plainview, Laurel, and West Point. If your matter is an injury claim instead of an intellectual property dispute, see our Norfolk personal injury 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).
What is trademark infringement?
For a registered mark, it is using in commerce a reproduction, counterfeit, copy, or colorable imitation in connection with goods or services where the use is likely to cause confusion, mistake, or deception (15 U.S.C. 1114(1)(a)).
Which court hears a copyright case from Norfolk?
The federal district courts have original jurisdiction over copyright claims (28 U.S.C. 1338(a)). For Norfolk, that is the District of Nebraska.
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 Norfolk?
The District of Nebraska (28 U.S.C. 107).
Can I bring both federal and Nebraska claims?
Often yes. A dispute can involve federal claims, such as under 15 U.S.C. 1114 or 18 U.S.C. 1836, and state-law claims under Nebraska law. An attorney can advise which to bring.
When does the trade secret clock start?
From the date the misappropriation is discovered or, by reasonable diligence, should have been discovered (18 U.S.C. 1836(d)).
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.
Take the Next Step in Your Norfolk Intellectual Property Matter
If you are unsure where to start, the form above is the simplest first step. It connects you with an attorney who can explain your options in Norfolk and what the next few weeks may involve.
