BBA3210 Columbia Southern Burger King Trademark Law Property Case Study Case Analysis Burger King, the national franchise, is banned from opening a restaur

BBA3210 Columbia Southern Burger King Trademark Law Property Case Study Case Analysis Burger King, the national franchise, is banned from opening a restaurant within 20 miles of Mattoon, Illinois. So, there is not a Burger King there; no problem, right? Not so fast! In the late 1950s, Gene and Betty Hoots trademarked the iconic name. Well, they trademarked it in Illinois at least. When the national company decided to open a chain close by, the Hoots sued and won their case. However, the national chain was able to keep the name Burger King, but the Hoots were also able to keep the name in accordance with the stipulation that the national chain could not open a store within a 20- mile radius of the original store in Mattoon, Illinois. In a minimum of 500 words, explain the reasons why this decision was made, and discuss the significance of this case in U.S. trademark law jurisprudence. For this assignment, please find one article from the CSU Online Library that discusses intellectual property; elaborate on how the article relates to the Burger King case to support your answer. Identify the main issues with copyright and trademark in the article, and explain how these issues were either upheld or overturned. Cite any direct quotes or paraphrased material from the article. Use APA format INSIGHTS
LEGAL AFFAIRS
Is your business protected?
Identify your intellectual
property or risk losing it
INTERVIEWED BY MARK SCOTT
ntellectual property (IP) protection is a
critical task that enables companies to
safeguard the hard work, expertise and
ingenuity of their employees, says Kristen
M. Hoover, a patent attorney at McCarthy,
Lebit, Crystal & Liffman. But, to be
effective, a plan must be crafted to fit the
way an organization functions.
“Each business must create a strategic plan
that protects its unique intellectual assets
everywhere they’re used,” Hoover says.
“To do this, companies need to understand
what IP they have and how those assets
are deployed both inside and outside their
walls.”
Smart Business spoke with Hoover on how
to formulate a plan to ensure a company’s
valuable IP resources are protected.
I
What constitutes IP and what assets might
companies overlook when designing a
protection program?
Many companies think IP protection is
exclusive to patents. For some businesses,
particularly those involved in innovation,
manufacturing or R&D, patents will be
a key component to their IP protection
strategy. However, patents are not the
only form of IP protection. IP can also be
protected with trademarks, copyrights, trade
secrets and contracts.
Trademarks often don’t receive the level of
attention they should. Many companies put
off seeking protection or do not think about
it until a problem arises. Logos, slogans and
business names are all items that should be
protected. Trademarks are source identifiers
and a key component to a company’s brand
identity. They allow companies to be
instantly recognizable to consumers and
build their reputation in the marketplace.
Copyright protection is often overlooked,
too, because copyrights are associated
48 Smart Business Cleveland | July 2017
KRISTEN M. HOOVER
Patent attorney
McCarthy, Lebit, Crystal & Liffman
(216) 696-1422
kmh@mccarthylebit.com
WEBSITE: To learn more about how to protect your company’s
valuable IP resources, visit www.mccarthylebit.com.
Insights Legal Affairs is brought to you by McCarthy, Lebit, Crystal & Liffman
with artistic works. However, there are
many business assets such as websites,
internal manuals and handbooks that are
copyrightable. Additionally, companies
that provide consulting work may have
prepared materials or give presentations
that should be protected. A trade secret is
any confidential business information that
gives a business a competitive advantage.
This could be any number of things, such
as marketing strategies, data compilations,
manufacturing processes, purchasing
information, personnel information or
customer lists. It’s a term that can be applied
broadly and cover a multitude of assets,
and often companies are not aware of all
the assets that could be protected as trade
secrets. Trade secret protection, however,
is dependent on companies handling this
information appropriately. An IP protection
plan should include proper procedures for
handling this confidential information.
How can confidential information be
protected?
To maintain confidential information,
and therefore trade secret protection,
companies must have internal policies that
restrict access to confidential information,
dictate how employees with access
handle this information, and require the
use of nondisclosure and confidentiality
agreements. All employees should be made
aware of these company policies and be
required to follow them.
Contracts such as nondisclosure and
confidentiality agreements are useful
tools to maintain confidential information
and protect trade secrets. For instance,
nondisclosure agreements provide
protection when discussing a potential
business venture with another company or
potential business partner. While it may be
necessary to share protected information in
order to explore potential business ventures,
it’s critical to take steps to ensure that
information is not shared or used beyond
the meeting. The nondisclosure agreement
allows parties to share information while
keeping it safeguarded and providing a
means to seek restitution if it is not.
How can companies effectively assess and
shore up their IP vulnerabilities?
Companies should talk with a patent
attorney who has experience developing
effective strategies to protect these valuable
business assets. This should include a
review of all aspects of the company’s
day-to-day business in order to gain a clear
understanding of what IP the company
has that should be protected. By working
with an experienced professional who can
provide guidance at each step, the process of
establishing an effective IP protection plan
becomes more affordable and manageable. O
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