Information Center Intellectual Property

Intellectual Property - An Overview

Intellectual property is the area of the law that deals with the protection of ideas. Intellectual property is a form of intangible personal property and is transferred, licensed and hypothecated like other items of personal property. There are four primary kinds of intellectual property: (1) trademarks and service marks, which can consist of a word, phrase, symbol, trade dress or other distinctive element that denotes a particular source, origin or sponsor of a product or service; (2) patents, which protect inventions; (3) copyrights, which protect original works of authorship such as books, computer programs, visual art, music and motion pictures; and (4) trade secrets, which protect confidential and economically valuable business information. These kinds of intellectual property or "IP" provide legal rights of action against the unauthorized manufacture, use, sale, distribution, reproduction or importation by persons other than the owner.

The Purpose of Intellectual Property Law

The various forms of intellectual property law were developed in order to compensate the creators of intellectual property for their creations. Patents and copyrights in particular encourage the dissemination to the public of new discoveries and writings, in exchange for government-granted monopolies for limited periods of time. Because patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets are all legal restraints on trade, they are intentionally limited in scope in order to provide appropriate incentives to creators while at the same time not unduly restricting free competition.

Regulation by State, Federal and International Law

Depending on subject matter, intellectual property rights are protected by one or more of federal and state laws and international treaties. Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution specifically grants to Congress the authority to grant, for limited times, patents and copyrights to respectively protect the discoveries of inventors and the writings of authors. Federal trademark and unfair competition law is premised on the Congress's power to regulate interstate commerce under the Constitution. Copyrights and patents are exclusively the province of federal law, the law of trade secrets is a matter of state law, and trademarks are enforced by both. Since the late Nineteenth Century, and as international trade has expanded and has become more important to countries' economies, international agreements have been put into place. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is involved in the administration of several international treaties on patents, trademarks and copyrights.

Intellectual Property and Unfair Competition

The infringement of trademarks, misappropriation of trade secrets, unfair business practices and deceptive marketing practices infringe on the freedom to compete fairly in the marketplace. While centered on concepts similar to those of trademark law, the law of unfair competition more generally seeks to provide remedies for victims of improper commercial practices. Federal and/or state law recognizes several kinds of unfair competition, among which are: (1) deceptive marketing of goods or services through either misrepresentation or "passing off" of one's goods as those of another; (2) false advertising that causes a competing business to lose sales; (3) criticism of another's goods or services through statements which are not supported by factual evidence; (4) using a famous or well-known trademark of another, without permission, to market one's own product or service; and (5) intentional interference with actual or prospective contractual relationships. The concepts of intellectual property and unfair competition together seek to eliminate dishonest commercial practices and ensure the expansion of markets and ideas. An intellectual property attorney can help you understand the law and assist you with your concerns.