If you have an established brand, you definitely want to protect it. A trademark is helpful in several ways. To begin with, it ensures others don’t infringe on your unique logo or name and help you retain the authenticity your company deserves. However, the registration process can be both complex and lengthy without the help of a lawyer who understands trademarks. Registering a trademark on your own will also prevent you from getting the legal advice you need in your situation. St. Louis trademark attorney Morris Turek can provide you with all the help and advice you need to register your trademark.
So, here’s why you need a trademark attorney.
- For Trademark search analysis
This is often the first and one of the most important steps in the establishment of a brand. Once you have established that you have a great product and unique name to match, you need to conduct a trademark search to determine if the name is already in use or seems closer to another name on the market. With the help of a trademark attorney, you can search and analyze the results together before you decide to proceed. If there’s another one already, you may have to pick another name.
- For brand protection
Trademarks are considered the cornerstone of a business or company and the pillars that support the brand. They distinguish you from the rest of the competition and people can easily tell you apart. For this reason, some individuals and businesses can take advantage of your trusted brand and sell counterfeit goods and services posing as you or your company. You can lose so much money in the process because of people posing as you. Also, you can face lawsuits for damages people suffer because of the counterfeit. A trademark attorney helps by ensuring your brand remains strong by analyzing the company name and logo, establishes their strengths and weaknesses, and develops a solid long-term protection plan of that trademark so that you can reap the benefits of your strong and established brand.
- For registration deadlines
Searching to ascertain that you’re the only owner of a brand name is only half the battle; you also need to register it and adhere to registration requirements. In the U.S., for instance, a trademark owner is required to renew the brand registration within 6 years and every decade thereafter. As a trademark or brand owner, you may not be able to keep up with the registration deadlines. However, a trademark attorney will help you ensure your registration is always valid. It is easy to overlook such details, but this can quickly become a big deal if missed.
- To avoid unnecessary rebranding
Another major benefit of hiring a trademark attorney is that it helps to avoid unnecessary rebranding in the future, as this could be potentially costly. Choosing the wrong brand now carries the potential cost of rebranding in the future, and you don’t want that considering the price you may have to pay for a mistake you made in the past. Considering you may have to pay a lot of money for a logo designer and new registration in the future, you may want to avoid this double cost by hiring a trademark attorney to help you make the right decision at the beginning.
- It is cost-saving in the long run
Every organization wants to save money by minimizing costs and maximizing profits. This not only ensures that the company can meet its financial obligations as they fall due but also provides an opportunity for growth and development to expand the company. With a trademark attorney, you can know the aspects of your trademark that require protection and those that don’t. He or she will also ensure the trademark application is properly filed right from the start so that you can avoid forfeiting filing fees, and adequately respond to preliminary refusals.
So, the importance of a trademark attorney cannot be overemphasized. Trademarks can be complicated if you lack the right legal experience. Not only will you do things right the first time but you’ll also save money in the long run.
