Kansas City Law Firm Van Osdol & Magruder Encourages Entrepreneurs, Business Owners & CMOs To Protect Intellectual Property

When entrepreneurs set out to develop the next “big idea,” protecting the intellectual property behind that idea may be the last thing on their mind. Additionally, Van Osdol & Magruder, The Biggest Little Law Firm® in Kansas City, has found that an entrepreneur may inadvertently prevent that new idea from ever seeing the light of day due to innocent mistakes. With proper precautions and careful structuring, one of the most valuable assets in that new business, its intellectual property, may be enhanced and protected. Intellectual property laws come into play in several important areas. From the choice of a company or product name, and ensuring that such name doesn’t violate the intellectual property rights of someone else, to ensuring proper filings are made to protect that name, entrepreneurs benefit from talking to an attorney well-versed in trademark law to make sure the simple choice of a name doesn’t cause more harm than good. New businesses need to also protect company logos, internet domain names, trade dress and marks, email addresses and patentable inventions. Careful thought should be given to whether the business or the business owner will actually own those assets. It is simple to inadvertently diminish the value of a company’s intellectual property. For example, moonlighting programmers working on new ideas after hours might be inadvertently contributing that work to their employer. New companies that hire contractors may neglect to put proper language in their agreements to ensure that what is being developed by those contractors is owned by the company. A company may fail to put in adequate safeguards to ensure its ideas are not carelessly disclosed to the world. Prior to investing too much time and effort in a new idea, it is a good idea to make sure that the laws of intellectual property are working in the new business owner’s favor. By doing an early analysis and ensuring the legal framework is in place, a new company can make sure that its intellectual property enhances the company’s growth.