Intellectual Property Law - The principal objective of Intellectual Property Law is to attract private investment in the production of various forms of proprietary information. To encourage this investment, individuals and businesses are granted property rights to appropriate for themselves the value of this proprietary information. Intellectual property law is typically subdivided into three (3) categories: patents, copyrights, and trademarks.

Copyright attracts investment in the production and distribution of original expressive information embodied in a tangible medium by providing authors, artists, composers, software developers and their publishers exclusive rights for a period of time. Patents stimulate investment in new and non-obvious technological information by granting a monopoly for a period of years. Trademarks encourage businesses to invest in symbolic information associated with goods and services by prohibiting competitors from using the same or confusingly similar symbols. Aside from federal law, state trade secret, unfair competition, and common laws are often used to protect information not eligible for federal protection.

Client Dedication - Our goal at Lewis, Rice & Fingersh is to evaluate the intellectual property requirements of our clients and provide responsive service as their businesses change thus giving them the peace of mind that their intellectual property rights are being properly managed. The Intellectual Property Practice at Lewis, Rice & Fingersh has an experienced staff of patent attorneys and paralegals with access to state-of-the-art computerized support services. We also use modern word processing and electronic telecommunications equipment to efficiently provide information and services when needed. Finally, our staff of trial attorneys are experienced in all aspects of patent, copyright, and trademark law and are skilled at using state-of-the-art devices for presenting our clients’ cases at trial.

Patent Practice - A patent is a contract between the government (whether U.S. or foreign) and an inventor which grants a limited monopoly to exclude others from making, using or selling a claimed invention for a period of years. In return for these rights, the inventor provides a public disclosure of their invention in order to promote the progress of science. Our intellectual property attorneys have assisted numerous clients in obtaining patents, enforcing them against infringers and defending them against allegations of infringement.

1. Patent Prosecution. Lewis, Rice & Fingersh’s staff of intellectual property attorneys are licensed to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office to prepare, file, and prosecute patent applications. They have extensive experience in preparing patentability studies designed to assist our clients in determining the likelihood of obtaining a patent before our clients expend a substantial capital investment in their invention. Aside from patentability studies, our intellectual property attorneys are also skilled at preparing infringement studies designed to assist our clients in determining whether a proposed product might potentially infringe other patents. Although often overlooked by most patentees, another critical service that our attorneys provide to our clients is that we take steps to draft patent applications which create meaningful patent protection capable of withstanding scrutiny if enforcement actions become necessary. Once our clients decide to apply for a patent, our intellectual property law attorneys will first assimilate a working knowledge of the invention and then prepare and file the patent application in accordance with U.S. patent laws.

2. Patent Litigation and ADR. Lewis, Rice & Fingersh has a skilled staff of individuals who have years of experience in patent-related conflict resolution. Our attorneys assist our clients in negotiating settlements or advocating their rights in mediation and alternative dispute resolution. If litigation becomes inevitable, we aggressively advocate our clients’ rights whether they are protecting their patents from infringers or defending themselves from an allegation of infringement. 

3. Patent Transactional Work. Licenses and assignments can be used to create economically advantageous relationships in the marketplace. Our intellectual property attorneys assist our clients by drafting and negotiating licenses and assignments which protect their interests.

Copyright Practice - Copyrights seek to protect original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression. Works of authorship include software; literary works; musical works, including any accompanying words; dramatic works, including any accompanying music; pantomimes and choreographic works; pictorial, graphical and sculptural works; motion pictures and other audiovisual works; and some recordings. Copyright, for most works, begins from the date of creation until 50 years after the author’s death. The owner of a copyright has certain exclusive rights with regard to reproducing, preparing derivative works, distribution, performing and displaying the copyright work. Lewis, Rice & Fingersh has vast experience at protecting the copyright interests of individuals, artists, software developers and businesses.

1. Copyright Registration. Complete protection of your copyright interests require compliance with a number of statutory formalities. A federal registration is a prerequisite to enforcing our clients’ rights in a federal court, claiming statutory damages, and claiming attorney's fees during litigation. Lewis, Rice & Fingersh is skilled at filing copyright registrations on a variety of subjects which will protect our clients’ interests.

2. Copyright Litigation and ADR. Lewis, Rice & Fingersh has a skilled staff of individuals who have many years experience in copyright-related conflict resolution. Our attorneys assist our clients in negotiating settlements and/or advocate their rights in mediation or alternative dispute resolution. In those situations where litigation proves to be inevitable, our attorneys aggressively advance our clients’ rights in a court of law.

3. Copyright Transactional Work. Licensing and assigning copyrights can generate substantial revenue streams. Lewis, Rice & Fingersh assists its clients in preparing and negotiating these types of agreements so that our clients’ copyright portfolios realize their full potential.

Trademark Practice - A trademark is any word, symbol or design adopted and used in commerce to identify a person’s goods or services. Trademarks can be registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office as well as in foreign countries. U.S. Federal registrations are based upon the power of Congress and the Constitution of the United States to regulate interstate and foreign commerce known as the commerce clause. The term of a registered trademark will vary from country to country. In the U.S., the initial term is presently ten years; however, they can be renewed indefinitely for additional ten year periods. Once you have established rights in your trademark, you can prevent others from using your trademark if their use is likely to cause confusion, mistake or deceive.

Differentiating our clients’ products from those of their competitors allows them to capitalize on the goodwill they have created with their consumers. The Intellectual Property department here at Lewis, Rice & Fingersh provides a full range of trademark related services designed to establish and further the capital investment our clients have in their trademarks.

1. Trademark Registration. Federal registration is often a critical step in obtaining nationwide trademark protection. We work with a multitude of clients in all aspects of the trademark registration process from the initial screening search through registration to the periodic maintenance requirements after issue. In addition, our intellectual property attorneys also have experience in opposition, cancellation, and other administrative proceedings before the Patent and Trademark Office.

2. Trademark Litigation and ADR. Lewis, Rice & Fingersh has a skilled staff of individuals who have years of experience in trademark-related conflict resolution. Our attorneys have experience in negotiating settlements and advocating our clients in mediation and alternative dispute resolution. If litigation becomes inevitable, our attorneys vigorously defend the rights of our clients whether they are protecting their trademarks against infringement or have been accused of infringement.

3. Trademark Transactional Work. Licensing and assigning trademarks to others may lead to a valuable revenue stream for the trademark owner while using the trademarks of others may lead to substantial marketing synergies. Unfortunately, many individuals and businesses often are unaware of the pitfalls surrounding licensing and assigning trademarks which may result in the abandonment of their trademark rights. Our attorneys are able to assist in preparing and negotiating these types of agreements to ensure that our clients’ rights are adequately protected.