The Invent Blog®

This morning I received an e-mail “Notice of Publication” on a trademark case, the first one of these I remember seeing.   Here’s the notice (redacted): NOTICE OF PUBLICATION Serial Number: 55-555,555 Mark:  TRADEMARK (STANDARD CHARACTER MARK) International Class(es):  555 Applicant: ACME, LLC Attorney Reference Number: 012345 The mark identified above has been published in the Trademark Official...

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The USPTO has released it’s first issue of the “Inventors Eye,” the USPTO’s bimonthly publication for the independent inventor community.  The first issue includes articles on: Patent Reform – An Open Letter Protect Your Innovation: Avoid Scams – By Ronald Jaicks : Office of the Solicitor Spark of Genius: The Spiral Eye Needle...

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Gene Quinn at IPWatchDog reports that LegalZoom has been sued (class action lawsuit) for “unauthorized practice of law” in Missouri, allegedly for offering legal advice regarding a will and for preparing incorporation documents. Other related blog posts I turned up on this topic: Gene Quinn on LegalZoom and the filing of trademark...

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Patent blogger Gene Quinn of IPWatchdog.com was sued yesterday by invention promotion company InventHelp.  Gene wrote a post on his blog entitled “Invent Help Sues IPWatchdog Alleging they are Not a Scam” which has the complete story.  In the post, Gene indicates that he is looking for information about InventHelp’s...

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Links to two of my recent articles written for lawyers: Law Blogs 101, The Idaho Law Report, January 19, 2010. Social Media Opens Up a Variety of New Professional Connections, The Advocate (Official Publication of the Idaho State Bar), vol. 53, no. 1, p. 35-36 (2010). Related posts:Free Webinar on Social Media 101...

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Read:  Venture Hacks blog on Top 10 reasons why entrepreneurs hate lawyers. Note:  Eight of his reasons are about failures to communicate, the other two are about money. Related posts:Five by Five – The Entrepreneurs Matt Homann (one of my favorite blawgers) has been doing... Interviews with famous entrepreneurs Have you checked out...

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Most larger cities have a “children’s museum” where kids (and grown ups) can experience “hands on” science.  Anything that teaches kids that science is cool is worth supporting! Our local children’s museum is called the “Discovery Center of Idaho.”  For about ten years now, I have provided free patent searches to...

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RULE 2.1: ADVISOR In representing a client, a lawyer shall exercise independent professional judgment and render candid advice. In rendering advice, a lawyer may refer not only to law but to other considerations such as moral, economic, social and political factors, that may be relevant to the client’s situation. Rule 2.1 does...

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The best book I read in 2009 was Seth Godin’s “The Dip.” If you haven’t read it, DO. In “The Dip,” Godin mentions the following passage from the Declaration of Independence: …all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing...

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I was shocked to find out this morning that this blog won (along with Patrick Lamb’s In Search of Perfect Client Service blog) one of Dennis Kennedy’s 2009 Law-related Blogging Awards (“The Blawggies”), namely “The Marty Schwimmer Best Practice-Specific Blog.” As Dennis describes it: I named this award for Marty Schwimmer’s lifetime achievement...

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