intellectual property

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 the known […]

The perils of public-generated content

There is a well-known phrase known to businesses relying on the internet to help drive marketing and sales: “Content is king.”

That phrase has expanded, in the wake of businesses turning to Facebook and YouTube and in the development and use of better consumer digital cameras and video. That new and improved phrase is this: “User-generated […]

August 13th, 2012|

Avoidance: Understandable, but Often Painful

This is about pain — the avoidable kind.

Lawyers can get a bad rap for shark-ism and sometimes, that’s fair. In this case, however, the pain is shared across the board, by both the lawyers and the clients. No one, including a hard-working and ethical attorney, likes seeing people have to spend blood, time and money […]

Caution: You’ve been hacked—and sued

The newest legal challenge on the horizon for businesses may be the rise of what is known as “The Copyright Troll.”  Copyright Trolls are generally companies formed by attorneys whose sole purpose is to secure the enforcement rights from content providers (usually movies) and then find infringers (using a special software) — wherein those same […]

July 11th, 2012|

Clash of the tax and retail titans

Since I counsel a lot of online businesses, including online retailers, I am often asked about the sales tax implications of online sales. Generally speaking, the answer is pretty easy: If you are a Colorado business and sell goods to individuals residing in Colorado, then you have to collect Colorado sales tax and the appropriate […]

A “Business” Spring Cleaning

by Peter C. Lemire, Esq.

A few days ago, a glorious 60 degree February day in Colorado allowed me to run outside in shorts and a short sleeved shirt. This brief respite from winter reminded me that spring is around the corner and with it the traditional spring cleaning at our house. Springtime is […]

March 2nd, 2012|

Chick-Fil-A – the tale of a trademark bully

The Internet has been a boon for trademark litigators. Using Google, the United States Patent and Trademark Office website and using various other third-party sites, company owners, executives and legal counsel can easily search and find other companies using marks similar to those they call their own. And once they find those dirty rotten trademark […]

December 29th, 2011|

This Ain’t Judge Judy

Attorneys, in general, are a pretty competitive bunch. Most of us can be qualified as type A personalities (or at minimum, A-). A lot of successful business people fall into this category as well.

While this drive to win (or achieve something that is perceived as winning), most likely is responsible for getting the attorney or […]

December 29th, 2011|
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