copyright
Can you please tell me what are the proper legal forms to protect a name for a clothing business I want to do. I just don't want nobody taking my name brand.
Re: copyright
I beg to differ a bit with the previous respondent. A "trade name" is the name of a business, and it is not the same as a trademark. A trademark can be one or more words, with or without graphics, that can distinguish the goods or services of a business from those of others. Thus Ford Motor Co. is a trade name, whereas the word Ford in a blue oval is one of the company's trademarks for vehicles.
In Pennsylvania, if one operates a business under a name other than that of the proprietor, one is obliged to register the "fictitious name" with the government. A fictitious name registration protects the public from fly-by-nighters, rather than protecting the businessman from others with similar names.
Re: copyright
I beg to differ a bit with the previous respondent. A "trade name" is the name of a business, and it is not the same as a trademark. A trademark can be one or more words, with or without graphics, that can distinguish the goods or services of a business from those of others. Thus Ford Motor Co. is a trade name, whereas the word Ford in a blue oval is one of the company's trademarks for vehicles.
In Pennsylvania, if one operates a business under a name other than that of the proprietor, one is obliged to register the "fictitious name" with the government. A fictitious name registration protects the public from fly-by-nighters, rather than protecting the businessman from others with similar names.
