Intellectual Property Is More Than One Thing.

When someone tells me they have an intellectual property question, that could mean twenty different things.

Maybe you’ve created something.

Maybe you’re building a brand.

Maybe someone is using your work.

Maybe you’ve received a cease-and-desist letter.

Maybe you need to send one.

Maybe you’re thinking about licensing something.

They’re all very different conversations.

So I don’t rush to an answer. I start with questions because the thing you first identify as the problem doesn’t always need the most attention.

Show me.

Show me what you’ve created.

Show me what the other person is doing.

Show me what’s the same.

Show me what’s different.

If you’re thinking about registering a trademark, my first answer is usually, “Maybe.”

I’m not avoiding the question. It’s just that we haven’t answered the ones that come first.

Are you using it today? How?

How do you plan to use it in the future?

Is someone else already using it?

If they are, were you using it first?

If you were, is this something you’re actually willing to fight for?

I do the same thing when someone believes another business is infringing their rights. Before we decide what to do, I want to understand what you’re seeing.

Show me your work.

Show me theirs.

Let’s look carefully at where they overlap.

Let’s look just as carefully at where they don’t.

A founder might come to me asking about a logo.

By the end of the conversation, we’re talking about the name.

Or the photographs.

Or the packaging.

Or the licensing opportunity they’ve never considered.

Different parts of a business deserve different kinds of protection.

And not every dispute is really about intellectual property.

Sometimes it’s about competition.

Sometimes it’s about two businesses trying to solve completely different problems.

That’s why I ask so many questions.

When we’re done talking, you should know if this is something to protect.

If it’s something to build on.

If it’s something to enforce.

If it’s something to license.

Or if it’s something that isn’t worth spending any more time or money on.

You decide which direction is best for your business.