Litigation
Call Our Dallas Intellectual Property Litigation Lawyers for More Information
Intellectual property rights are essential for your business’s ability to maintain an advantage over competitors. Without these rights, competitors can steal your ideas and use them to gain an economic advantage over your business. Fortunately, federal and state laws allow you to assert your intellectual property rights when other parties steal your ideas. Intellectual property litigation covers disputes involving patents, trademarks, trade secrets, copyrights and other intellectual property issues. Businesses have a couple of legal options for handling instances of intellectual property theft. The first option is to negotiate with the infringing party to reach a settlement. You can start the negotiation process by sending a cease and desist letter. However, settlement negotiations do not always work, and it may be necessary to consider the second option, litigation. When it comes to intellectual property litigation, our firm has the manpower and trial experience to vigorously pursue your rights through to a jury verdict. We use the same tenacity to defend against claims that you violated the IP rights of others. Carstens, Allen & Gourley’s litigation team focuses on understanding your business and its individual needs. We recognize that not every client is the same, and we tailor our strategy in each case to fit our client’s needs. We use our years of proven litigation success to obtain the best possible outcome for each case.
Trademark Litigation in Texas
Trademarks protect tangible goods and products. Businesses use trademarks to distinguish their goods from goods sold by another party, such as a competitor. You can receive a trademark for a word, name, symbol or device that identifies your products or services. There are two ways to obtain a trademark in Texas. First, you can obtain ownership of a trademark by using it. If you are the first to use a distinctive trademark in connection with your goods or services, then common law trademarks arise in the trademark as soon as you begin using it. The second and better approach is to seek registration of the trademark with either the Texas Secretary of State’s office or the USPTO. Before a registration issues, however, you must begin using the trademark. Once you have secured rights in the mark, you can seek damages and/or an injunction for trademark infringement against anyone who uses the same or similar mark in a manner that is likely to cause confusion among consumers. Trademark litigation may be necessary in cases where you are unable to reach a settlement with the other party and need to file a lawsuit. At trial, you need to show that you have a legally protected trademark and that it is likely the defendant’s trademark will cause confusion among consumers or clients. There are additional factors that could matter, such as whether the defendant reproduced, copied, or counterfeited your legally protected trademark. Such factors can give rise to additional damages or even criminal charges. You can file a trademark lawsuit in federal or state court, although most cases tend to be filed in federal court, and thus federal courts are generally more familiar with trademark law. We encourage you to reach out to our Dallas trademark litigation lawyers if you have questions about filing a trademark infringement lawsuit.
Copyright Litigation
Our Dallas intellectual property law firm also handles copyright litigation. Copyrights protect “original works of authorship”, such as photographs, written works, and music. When copyright infringement occurs, other parties may take these works and pawn them off as their own, sometimes for economic profit. Owners of copyrighted works can pursue several legal options against parties guilty of infringement. For example, if a DMCA take-down notice or other method does not work, litigation may be filed.
Trade Secret Litigation
We also handle trade secret litigation cases. Trade secrets allow businesses to maintain an edge over their competitors, and are extremely important for remaining profitable. Client lists, product designs, marketing techniques and research are examples of potential trade secrets companies utilize to stay competitive. When another party takes trade secrets and uses them for its own economic gain, it is important to consider your legal options. You may be able to recover damages caused by trade secret theft. Our trade secret litigation attorneys can help you determine whether you should file a trade secret lawsuit, and can also advise whether the suit should be filed in federal or state court.
About Our Dallas Intellectual Property Litigation Attorneys
Carstens, Allen & Gourley, LLP is a Dallas intellectual property law firm with extensive experience handling patent, trademark, trade secret, and copyright litigation cases. Our Dallas intellectual property litigation attorneys can help businesses or individuals fight back against instances of infringement. You can learn more about how we can help you or your business by scheduling a consultation with one of our attorneys. To schedule a consultation, call 972-367-2001 or use our online contact form.
