Internet Business

If I decided to start an online business in the State of Maryland do I need to fill out any ''Do Business As'' forms? The business itself is not cofined to only do business in MD, it is for everyone. It is an interactive site like facebook. Also how do I patent and idea or a company name? Thank you for your time!

copyright in art work

I would like to decoupage furniture and frames to sell. What are the laws regarding the use of maps, posters, post cards, old books, magazines, wrapping paper in my own work?

Can someone sue me for using 2 sentences from their website?

I copied 2 sentences from a website & used them in my ebay auction & the owner of the site where I copied them says he wants $1,000 immediately or he will file charges against me for copyright issues. What can he do?I told him that is blackmail to say pay me or I am filing charges.He said its a debt I owe&he can say pay but who said I owe him $1000 for using two of his sentences.he is nuts.I told him Im disabled with low income & he said that is my problem.

Am I infringing a patent when...

Here's a tough one...Please help! sorry for so many questions! My small home based company is in the verge of being sued for patent infringing. The Patentee is a Spanish company and its NOT the inventor of the idea/apparatus. A very similar apparatus was invented (BUT NOT patented), publicized and put ''on sale'' in 97 by another european company. Patentee then started to sell the apparatus on 1999 through their website to Europe and USA markets. On april 2003 (4 years later) they finally filled a patent application in, Europe first, for the product. A little LESS than 1 year after they filled an application here in USA for it. It was pending approval until Oct 2007!!In February 2007 I started to sell similar product on my website. Now they claim infringement. Can I claim invalidity of their foreign patent due to time span between ''on sale'' and ''reduced to practice'' and subsequently the invalidity here in USA? Also can I represent myself in court or do I have to hire a lawyer? They are litigating against my Incorporated company. Not myself. And if I can't afford a lawyer...are there public (for free) ones? Does the Patentee have a weak case?

Trademark & Tradename

I bought a small business(corporation) last year in NJ which contained a license agreement which requires me to use the trademark of the seller and pay a monthly license fee. The trademark is basically a logo with the business name imbedded in the logo. The trademark is not registered anywhere and the business name embedded in the logo is my business's name which is a registered tradename(DBA) in the county where the business is located. The tradename(DBA) is registered in my name. Can I be forced to use and pay for a 'trademark' that has my legal business name embedded in it?

patent?copyright?trademark? or all?

i developed my own system of self defense years ago and it is in use. I gave it a name. What do I need to do to legally protect myself from others that would try to lay claim to it?

Non-Disclosure Agreement

I have written a short non-disclosure agreement with a firm. In it, I agree to disclose a proprietary business process if they agree to not disclose this process and to not use the process with another firm.

I would like to have an attorney read it and tell me if there are any pitfalls/mistakes I should be aware of.

patent violation? personal photo used unauthorized

this author used a picture that including my image in it and print my name in the picture, without my permission. can i sue him? under what law? thanks for any advice.

Choosing a Law School for IP Law

Hello,

I am currently choosing between 2 law schools in New York and would like any input to help with me choice. The first school is Cardozo Law School where I have recieved a $90,000 scholarship and the second school is Fordham Law School where I have not recieved a scholarship. I am interested in studying IP Law in New York and both schools have good programs for this. Fordham is ranked higher in most ranking systems and has a higher average starting salary, yet I am not sure if it is worth giving up my really good scholarship at Cardozo for. Thank-you so much for any input! I really appreciate it!

copyright purchase

I recently purchased some

photographic film negatives from a

newspaper that were shot in the

1930s-1960 range. coming from the

newspaper i am guessing they are

works for hire and that the paper

owns the copyright and not the

photographers. by purchasing the

original negatives have i also

purchased the copyright?

Intellectual property

I have had an idea for a website for months, that I thought was very original, but I recently found another website that has a feature that is very similar. Some of the ideas are almost identical, but not everything. My site is going to be a year long contest, and there's only is a 3 month feature. My site will allow users to dictate who's going to be in the final round of 64, theirs is picked by employees, then winners by the users, just like theirs, and identical to what NCAA basketball tournament uses. There's numerous differences, but I'm curious if that falls under any copyright laws. The colors of the site, logo and domain name are totally different though. And the process of picking a winner is totally different. Can someone give me some idea if this is considered copyright infringement. Thanks

International Copyright - Vietnam

I work at a library and we are looking to scan prints that were made in Vietnam in the 1960s. I see copyright protection in Vietnam was only established in the 80s and with the US in the 90s. Are materials produced before then subject to copyright protection? Also, these are somewhat ''orphan works'' -- meaning we are unsure as to who created them.

small claims

what is the best approach in speaking to the Judge in a small claims court matter?

small claims

I am to appear in small claims court and I am nervous as hell, how can I request a post-ponement at the court hearing due to my witness had a family emergency and had to go out of town and will not be back for a week.

trademark parameters

What are the legal guidelines for an artist to use trademarked properties as subject matter in a series of different original paintings represented as contemporary iconic subject matter?

Intellectual law

I have a idea/invention...are there lawyers that can take me through the whole process from trademarking/patented to sales and managing millions of dollars in revenue and profit? Or, do I need several lawyers who specialize in different areas?

property lein

During my transition of moving on such short notice, my friend(Now ex-friend) ''offered'' me to store my ''Wooden storage shed'' and ''1993 Toyota truck'' on her property until I was able to move them to my new residence. Approx. 25-days upon settling in at my new residence, I contacted my friend and let her know I was going to move the shed & truck. She then told me she had put a ''Lien'' on my shed & truck. I contacted the local authorities and asked for a ''keeper of the Peace'' to assist me in aquiring my property. The authorities could not help me if she would not answer the door? Several days later, I was served to appear in court for ''small claims''.

I am lost and need ''HELP'' !!!!!

''Please'' someone contact Me A.S.A.P!!!!!!

trademarks

I'm a jeweler.

A client has asked me to make him a ring with a logo (ie Mercedes Benz Star) on it. I know that's a protected trademark. If it's just for the one person & we're not advertising it to others, can we make that without risking legal action? I can have them sign a note that they've asked us to make it for them, I'd guess. thanks.

china

Is it safe to order clothes and sneakers from china?

Copyright ownership of email?

I believe the sender of email owns the copyright in and to it, however, to what extent can one use, republish, or quote from someone else's non-confidential, non-privileged, and not covered by any non-disclosure or similar agreement email? This is routine business email communications and I wish to let others know of its contents.