Intro
Whether you sell goods and/or services, you want to protect your business brand by preventing others from misusing it to hurt your image. In many cases, a trademark lawyer can help you get maximum legal protection for your brand.
What Is A Trademark?
Your trade mark is your brand name for one or more goods that you sell. You can express this brand in multiple ways, including a name, symbol, words, device, or a combination of these with the purpose of identifying your good(s) separately from competitors.
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If you have not registered your trademark with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO), you may assert your unregistered mark as your brand by adding a superscripted “TM” to it.
However, to reduce the risk of getting into legal hot water, it’s a good idea to have trademark attorney review your unregistered mark and have a search performed to see if there are competing claims to the mark or one similar to it.
What Is A Service Mark?
Just as a trademark is a brand for your good(s), a service mark is a brand for one or more services that you sell. If you don’t have a registered service mark with the USPTO, you may assert your unregistered service mark by adding a superscripted “SM” to it.
However, just like an unregistered trademark, you’ll probably want to have an experienced trademark attorney review your unregistered service mark to see if there are legal risks, including potential competing claims to the mark by others.
