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How intellectual property law shows up in Cowpens
The Town of Cowpens, at 5330 N Main St, Cowpens, SC 29330, posts its business license application as a download on its forms page, accepts business license and hospitality tax payments online, and tells contractors to hold a town business license before they apply for a building permit.
Smurfit Westrock lists its Cowpens Mill at 139 Price Farm Road in Cowpens and describes it as a paper mill making kraft paper, linerboard or containerboard for regional packaging production. The company page does not say whether the mill is inside the town limits.
Two more manufacturers use Cowpens addresses on Mt. Olive Road, and the state releases that describe them place their sites in Cherokee County. A February 2022 release from the Governor’s office describes Bericap SC, LLC, a plastic closure maker founded in 1926, as supplying closures to the water, dairy, soft drink and sports drink markets from 1300 Mt. Olive Road. The same release announced a $19.7 million expansion to add several production lines; whether it has been finished is not confirmed here. In October 2022 a South Carolina Department of Commerce release said that Niagara Pharmaceuticals, a Canadian maker of eye wash and other eye health and safety products sold under the Health Saver and Pur-Wash brands, would set up its first United States operation at 1290 Mt. Olive Road. The release described a planned $9 million investment and 45 new jobs, figures that were plans at that date.
Patent claims belong to the federal courts, which have the power to hear them under 28 U.S.C. 1338(a). A patent owner who sues can recover damages for no more than the six years before the suit was filed (35 U.S.C. 286). Copyright gives a three year window from the date a civil claim accrued (17 U.S.C. 507(b)), and for a United States work the owner generally needs a registration, or a refusal from the Copyright Office, before filing an infringement suit (17 U.S.C. 411(a)). Federal trademark registration is available under 15 U.S.C. 1051, and 18 U.S.C. 1836(b) lets the owner of a misappropriated trade secret sue in federal court when the secret relates to a product or service used in, or intended for use in, interstate or foreign commerce.
Which federal court division lists Spartanburg County
Under 28 U.S.C. 121, the statute that splits South Carolina into federal divisions, Spartanburg County falls in the Spartanburg Division of the District of South Carolina. The court’s pages give 201 Magnolia Street, Spartanburg, SC 29306 as the address for that division. Federal venue rules, not the division list, decide where a particular case may be filed, and some claims can be heard in state court instead.
Help for inventors and business owners in Spartanburg County
The Clemson Region Small Business Development Center serves Spartanburg County through its Spartanburg Area office, according to the Clemson SBDC locations page. That office keeps part time hours in Room 103 at Spartanburg Community College’s Tyger River Campus, 1875 East Main Street in Duncan. Questions about who owns a design, a formula or a product name belong with an attorney.
Under its Small Business Resources heading, the Town of Cowpens website links to Power Up Spartanburg, which calls itself Spartanburg County’s small business development initiative. Its countywide help covers space, loans, contracts with large employers, mentors, people with knowledge of particular subjects, and Power Up University courses. If an introduction to a large employer leads to a request for your drawings or samples, ask an attorney whether a confidentiality agreement should come first.
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South Carolina rules that sit beside federal law
The South Carolina Trade Secrets Act, S.C. Code Ann. 39-8-10 to 39-8-130, protects information such as a formula, pattern, compilation, program, method, process, design or code that has economic value because it is not generally known or readily found out by proper means, and that the owner makes reasonable efforts to keep secret. A claim for misappropriation has a three year limit that runs from when the taking was discovered, or should have been discovered with reasonable diligence, and a continuing misappropriation is treated as one claim (S.C. Code Ann. 39-8-70).
Noncompete agreements in South Carolina are governed by court decisions rather than by any statute, the courts read them strictly, and the current rule is one an attorney should confirm for you.
Questions people in Cowpens ask
### Does my Cowpens business license protect my company name?
The Town of Cowpens issues business licenses, and South Carolina leaves business licensing to cities and counties. The Secretary of State does not register DBA or trade names, so the state has no statewide assumed name filing. Ask an attorney how to protect the name itself.
### What does a South Carolina trademark application ask for?
The mark has to be in use before the Secretary of State will register it. The application lists the owner, the goods or services, the date the mark was first used anywhere and the date it was first used in South Carolina, and it includes three specimens showing the mark as it is actually used. The Secretary of State’s trademark page says online filing is now available for all trademark and service mark filings. A state registration gives rights inside South Carolina and no federal protection, which is why a product sold across state lines raises the question of a federal filing under 15 U.S.C. 1051.
Have questions about a patent, trademark, copyright, or trade secret? Connect with an attorney.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a South Carolina trademark registration last?
A mark registered with the South Carolina Secretary of State stays on the register for five years. The owner can renew it for more five year periods, but the renewal has to be filed within the six months before the current term runs out (S.C. Code Ann. 39-15-1130). Put that six month window on your calendar on the day the registration issues.
Is the Niagara Pharmaceuticals site on Mt. Olive Road inside the Town of Cowpens?
The South Carolina Department of Commerce release from October 2022 gives the site a Cowpens address, 1290 Mt. Olive Road, but it places the site in Cherokee County. The release does not say whether the site is inside the town limits.
Where does the Spartanburg Division of the federal court sit?
The court’s pages list 201 Magnolia Street, Spartanburg, SC 29306 for the Spartanburg Division of the District of South Carolina. Spartanburg County is assigned to that division under 28 U.S.C. 121. Whether a given dispute may be filed there depends on federal venue rules, so ask an attorney before you rely on the county list.
Is there a time limit on copyright and patent claims?
A civil copyright claim has to be brought within three years after it accrued (17 U.S.C. 507(b)). For patents, 35 U.S.C. 286 limits damages to the six years before the suit is filed. Keep dated records of when you noticed copying, since the start date can matter under both statutes.
Where is the Spartanburg County small business development office?
The Clemson Region Small Business Development Center covers Spartanburg County from its Spartanburg Area office in Room 103 of Spartanburg Community College’s Tyger River Campus, 1875 East Main Street in Duncan. The office keeps part time hours, so check before you make the trip from Cowpens.
If your matter arose in a different city, start from our statewide South Carolina intellectual property directory. Our coverage in this part of South Carolina also includes Pacolet, Spartanburg, and Gaffney. If the matter involves a crash, a fall, or another injury, our Cowpens personal injury attorney page is the better fit.
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Before a first call, write down when you first used your name or mark, when you created or shared the design or process, and what agreements you signed with any employer, customer or mentor program. If something was copied or taken, add the date you learned of it, since several of the limits above run from accrual or discovery. When those notes are ready, you can get matched with an intellectual property attorney.
