Uncategorized Archives | Trademark Counsel

LegalForce Sues LegalZoom

The 81-page complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on December 19, 2017, says the lawsuit is being brought to “expose the willful and systematic acts of unauthorized practice of law, false advertising and unfair competition by LegalZoom,” and to help attorneys “compete on an equal playing field” with the online legal document company. See Complaint-LegalForce-RAPC-v-LegalZoom See my other post regarding LegalZoom for why I don't consider the company "competition." I occasionally get asked by prospective clients...

Protecting your rights in the digital world: Website/App Terms of Use

By Kelly Weiner

When developing a website or app, Terms of Use (also referred to as Terms of Service or Terms and Conditions) are typically an afterthought. Companies know that they “should” have them – the Terms of Use govern the relationship between the parties. But, oftentimes companies overlook one important step – consent. Generally, there are two ways in which end users “consent” to the Terms of Use for a website or app: continuing to use the website/app (a “browse-wrap agreement”) or...

Defining the Scope of your Goods/Services – Class Headings

By Kelly Weiner

Unlike many other trademark offices, the US trademark office does not permit the use of class headings to identify the goods or services in a registration. A common filing strategy for applicants (particularly foreign applicants and other applicants that rely on foreign registrations as the basis for registration in the US) is to include the class headings in an initial application, with the intention of later narrowing the scope of the goods or services at a later time. In a...