PATENTS & TRADEMARKS
(Utility, Design, or Plant) Patents protect inventions and improvements to existing inventions. Generally, the term of a new patent is 20 years from the date on which the application for the patent was filed in the United States.
Trademarks are a word, name, symbol, or device that is used in trade with goods to indicate the source of the goods and to distinguish them from the goods of others. A servicemark is the same as a trademark except that it identifies and distinguishes the source of a service rather than a product. The terms "trademark" and "mark" are commonly used to refer to both trademarks and servicemarks.
Copyright is a form of protection provided to the authors of "original works of authorship" including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works, both published and unpublished. In order to ensure copyright protection, the copyright owner should always include notices on all copies of the work.
- US Patent & Trademark Office - The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) administers the patent and trademark laws as they relate to the granting of patents for utility inventions, designs and plants and the issuing of trademark registrations.
- New Mexico Secretary of State - The Secretary of State is responsible for the registration of trademarks and/or servicemarks at the state level for a term of ten years.
Caution: Federally registered trademarks may conflict with and supersede state registered business and product names. Businesses are encouraged to check for conflicts with federal trademarks.
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