Category: Business Law

Inventors have a right to protect their inventions through the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). With the creation of a device come a bundle of property rights issued by the United States Government.   A patent prevents all “others from making, using, or selling the invention in the United States.”  The patent may...

Courts typically disfavor “covenants not to compete” or “non-compete agreements.”  Therefore, the terms and provisions of these contracts must not be overly restrictive of the employee.  In order for a non-compete to be upheld, the document must “be reasonable in scope, geography, and time.”  It cannot last for years on end, or prevent the...

Many business owners wonder which type of Intellectual Property protection is the best fit for their business purposes?  A “trade secret” is intellectual property that is kept private in order to maintain its financial value in the marketplace.  Examples of trade secrets include: “a formula, pattern, compilation, program, device, method, technique or process.”   Alternatively,...

There is a widespread misconception that verbal contracts are unenforceable.  Nevertheless, a contract made orally with another party, without embodying the particular terms in a signed writing, can still be valid and binding. Even so, any disagreement concerning the deal may pose multiple problems for both parties.  In order for the court to give...

Authors often want to understand the eligibility of their writings for copyright protection. Legal copyright registration provides the copyright holder with a collection of special rights. Under the U.S. Copyright Act, a rightful owner maintains the “exclusive right to reproduce, distribute, perform, display, license, and . . . prepare derivative works” founded on his...

The law forbids businesses from including baseless statements or assertions in their advertisements.  According to the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA), a business must ensure that their representations are not misleading or unfair, and the entity must have data that supports all claims.  Evidence may, for example, be substantiated based by surveys, expert testimony,...

Most employers know that their workers are protected from discrimination while they are employed.  Surprisingly, some are unaware that prospective employees are protected throughout the application and hiring process as well.  Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and the...

A 1992 Supreme Court decision Quill Corp. v. North Dakota established the principle that an out-of-state retailer does not have to collect state sales tax if it does not have a physical location—a store, business office, or warehouse—in the state where the purchase originated. Theoretically, the consumer placing the order in a state that has...

Employees do not always depart on the best of terms. When that is the case, what are your obligations in terms of disclosure when a prospective employer contacts you to check for references? Keeping negative opinions to yourself might seem like a surefire way to stay out of court. A bad reference might lead...

Sometimes a business grows more rapidly than expected and its leased space is no longer large enough. Other times a business finds itself losing money and unable to pay rent. In those instances, it is the commercial tenant that desires to break its lease. There are times, however, when a commercial landlord seeks to...

Frivolous lawsuits are an all-too-common problem for small businesses. This is because, under current laws, there is almost no risk to trial attorneys or their clients for bringing even absurd cases to court. While large companies routinely retain attorneys and have the financial means to protect themselves from frivolous lawsuits, small businesses may be...

It is impossible to predict every lawsuit that a small business might possibly face. There is nothing to prevent angry vendors, entitled customers, or disgruntled employees from filing a lawsuit, even if there is no legitimate basis for it. The more a business owner delegates responsibilities to employees, the greater the risk that an...