The Basics of Intellectual Property Law

Intellectual property law protects ideas and concepts that are created by the human mind. Patent law aims to protect inventions and discoveries, including everything from product innovations to new processes. Copyright law protects original artistic creations such as music, films, literary works, and television programs. Trademark law pertains to brands, logos, and other symbols that are associated with particular products and businesses. The laws established for licensing are designed to permit intellectual property owners to share their protected ideas with others in ways that are both legal and mutually beneficial. Laws dealing with unfair competition and statutes pertaining to counterfeiting and pirating of creative works also extend legal protection to intellectual property owners against others profiting from their ideas.

Intellectual property law is a legal area that includes copyright law, patent law, trade secret law, and trademark law. Intellectual property law also sometimes has to do with other areas of the law, such as licensing and unfair competition.

These different areas of intellectual property law often overlap with one another and are frequently practiced by the same attorneys. For example, a new process for managing a business’s intellectual property can be protected as a trade secret before it is patented. Or, copyright and patent law may be used to protect creative efforts intrinsic to computer software.

Mueller Hillin specializes in Intellectual Property cases in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Houston and Austin.