Recent Articles from Kurt Leyendecker
The sweet spot: When to file for your patent
Under the current first to file rules, whoever files first on an invention is the inventor who will receive a patent even over another later-filing inventor who came up with the idea first.
It's all in a name (or not)
Where would Amazon be if it were called "An Online Bookstore"? Companies should pick names that are more fanciful or arbitrary instead of descriptive when compared with the services offered by the business.
Trademarks + marketing = power
Anyone who has watched even a small amount of television over the past year or so is probably familiar with the Ford commercials featuring Mike Rowe of Dirty Jobs fame pitching cars with engines that utilize EcoBoost® technology.
Trademarks on wheels
The purpose of trademarks is to protect consumers so that they know what they are buying. However, when a company fails and its marks go abandoned, anyone can pick them up and register them as their own – and then sell products under the old venerable brand. Even though I know the new Motobecane h...
My take on Tesla
What is good for Tesla isn't necessarily good for everyone else. Do patents really stifle innovation and award attorneys to the detriment of inventors as Musk contends? There are no doubt dozens if not hundreds of small – even tiny – companies across the country trying to develop new motor and bat...
The K-cup story
Many years ago, John Sylvan had an idea: provide a hermetically-sealed, compact cartridge containing a filter and enough ground coffee to brew a single serving in a specially designed brewer. After the freshly brewed coffee was delivered, the remaining carcass would simply be discarded without fus...
Internet marketing and trademark trouble
Whether it’s a local search or nationwide, search engines can provide the answer. There are some drawbacks, however, to this brave new world of marketing. Most obvious is the enhanced competition and the increased amount of time and money spent on optimizing a website. The less obvious disadvantag...
Can I patent that?
A question I frequently get from prospective clients is, “Is my invention patentable?” Variations on this inquiry include the following: • “Can I patent an improvement to a device that is already available?” • “Is it correct that in order for something to be patentable, it has to be at least 10 percent different than […]
File that patent!
Do you or your company have a product or process that you’ve been developing for some time but have yet to patent? If so, a new law could considerably affect your ability to patent. In 2011, Congress passed the America Invents Act (AIA), with the provisions of the act to be amended over time. The […]
Does Tim own Tebowing?
Has a trademark taken Tebowing off the table? The short answer: No. Neither Tim Tebow nor any business entity with which he is involved owns a trademark on his signature move. Interestingly, headlines just a week or so ago may have indicated otherwise. The opening line of the widely carried AP s...
Invention alert
About every 10 years, Congress reforms the patent statute to correct various issues and problems it sees in the patent system. About a year ago, the America Invents Act (AIA) became law. The act represents the most significant changes to the patent system in more than 50 years. The President and Congress have touted that […]
A one-word secret to economic growth
The Horatio Alger story is alive in most all of us: We dream of coming up with the proverbial better mouse trap, obtaining a patent and watching interested companies beat a path to our door to lavish us with millions. Most people understand that patents grant an inventor a limited monopoly or ownership right in […]