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Gallup at a glance
The University of New Mexico Gallup branch campus stands at 705 Gurley Avenue, and a May 2026 university article describes it as a place that teaches welding, automotive technology, construction and nursing. The same article says the campus hosts a Small Business Development Center that assists local artisans and small business owners. People who make, build or sell things in Gallup, in McKinley County, may be holding a question about patents, copyrights, trademarks or trade secrets without having named it yet.
Step one: identify what you own
Write down which part of your work belongs among patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets before you talk to anyone. A United States work generally must be registered, or refused registration by the Copyright Office, before an infringement suit can be filed (17 U.S.C. 411(a)), and trademarks can be registered federally under 15 U.S.C. 1051.
Step two: check what is registered
Checking what is already registered, and at which level, comes before you file anything yourself. New Mexico lets an owner register a trademark or service mark with the state as well as the federal government. The filing goes to the New Mexico Secretary of State, Business Services Division, at 325 Don Gaspar, Suite 300, Santa Fe, NM 87501, and the office’s trademark page lists what it needs to register a mark.
The state Trademark Act is Chapter 57, Article 3B of the New Mexico statutes. The Secretary of State’s application instructions, revised in 2020, ask for three different specimens, with at least one showing a New Mexico physical address, and they say the mark must already be in use in New Mexico. The 2020 forms list a $50 filing fee that includes one class, plus $25 for each added class, and a $25 fee to renew.
Because the instructions and fees quoted here come from 2020 forms, confirm the current ones with the Secretary of State before you rely on them, and ask an attorney which kind of registration fits your plans.
Step three: know the court
The federal court in New Mexico is the District of New Mexico. The court lists courthouses in Albuquerque, Las Cruces, Roswell and Santa Fe, and its pages describe them as places where the court holds court.
A claim for patent infringement is filed in federal court and nowhere else (28 U.S.C. 1338(a)). An attorney should confirm the court before anything is filed.
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Step four: watch the clock
Damages for patent infringement can be recovered for the six years before the suit is filed (35 U.S.C. 286). A civil copyright claim must be brought within three years after it accrued (17 U.S.C. 507(b)).
Those two figures are federal ones. This page gives no deadline for any claim under New Mexico law, and an attorney is the right person to say when your own clock began.
Step five: protect secrets at work
New Mexico has its own trade secrets statute, the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, found in Chapter 57, Article 3A of the New Mexico statutes, Sections 57-3A-1 to 57-3A-7. The New Mexico Supreme Court Law Library lists it in its guide to uniform laws. The federal Defend Trade Secrets Act, 18 U.S.C. 1836, sits beside the state statute, and the owner of a misappropriated trade secret that relates to a product or service used in, or intended for use in, interstate or foreign commerce can sue in federal court under 18 U.S.C. 1836(b).
Noncompete agreements get separate treatment for one group of workers. New Mexico has a noncompete statute that covers health care, in Sections 24A-4-1 to 24A-4-5 of the New Mexico statutes. Under it, a noncompete in an agreement with a covered health care practitioner cannot be enforced once the agreement, a renewal or an extension, or the practitioner’s employment with the party seeking enforcement ends. A clause that moves such an agreement to another state’s law or courts is void. The covered practitioners include physicians, dentists, nurse practitioners, psychologists, physician assistants and pharmacists.
If you are outside health care and have signed a noncompete, an attorney should confirm the current rule before you act on it or ignore it.
Step six: use local help
The Small Business Development Center at UNM Gallup has its office in Gurley Hall, Suite 1204, at 705 Gurley Avenue in Gallup. According to the center’s page, as read in October 2026, it offers free business counseling, startup advice, business plan help and workshops. Questions about who owns an invention, a design or a brand belong with an attorney.
Step seven: local organizations to know
The Greater Gallup Economic Development Corporation lists its office at 102 W. Hill Avenue in Gallup. Its website has sections on incentives, an industrial workforce program, and available sites, buildings and industrial parks, as the page read in October 2026 shows.
Step eight: industry context
The Gallup tourism site states that Gallup and its surrounding area produce most of the nation’s Native American jewelry and host the largest wholesale Native American art business sector in the United States. Ask an attorney whether any rule beyond the ones on this page applies to your particular product.
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Step nine: talk to an attorney
Before a first conversation, gather what you can show: drafts, photographs, receipts, agreements signed with employers or partners, and the dates when the work was first made, shared or sold. For the statewide view, see New Mexico intellectual property attorneys. To start, you can get matched with an intellectual property attorney.
Related Intellectual Property Pages
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a New Mexico health care worker be held to a noncompete?
New Mexico has a noncompete statute for health care, in Sections 24A-4-1 to 24A-4-5 of the New Mexico statutes. A noncompete in an agreement with a covered health care practitioner cannot be enforced once the agreement, a renewal or an extension, or the practitioner’s employment with the party seeking enforcement ends. An attorney should confirm the current rule.
What does the state trademark application ask for?
The Secretary of State’s application instructions, revised in 2020, ask for three different specimens, with at least one showing a New Mexico physical address. They say the mark must already be in use in New Mexico. The 2020 forms list a $50 filing fee that includes one class, plus $25 for each added class, and a $25 fee to renew. Check the current forms with the Secretary of State.
Is there free business counseling in Gallup?
The Small Business Development Center at UNM Gallup offers free business counseling, startup advice, business plan help and workshops, as its page read in October 2026 describes. The office is in Gurley Hall, Suite 1204, at 705 Gurley Avenue. A May 2026 university article adds that the center assists local artisans and small business owners. Questions about ownership of an invention or a brand go to an attorney.
How many courthouses does the federal court in New Mexico list?
The court lists courthouses in Albuquerque, Las Cruces, Roswell and Santa Fe. The federal court in New Mexico is the District of New Mexico. This page does not say which courthouse serves a particular city.
How long do I have to act on a patent or copyright problem?
Damages for patent infringement can be recovered for the six years before the suit is filed (35 U.S.C. 286). A civil copyright claim must be brought within three years after it accrued (17 U.S.C. 507(b)). An attorney can tell you when your own clock began.
Where is the Greater Gallup Economic Development Corporation?
The corporation lists its office at 102 W. Hill Avenue in Gallup. Its website has sections on incentives, an industrial workforce program, and available sites, buildings and industrial parks, according to the page as read in October 2026.
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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.
