If you are doing business in Ohio, you may have ideas you want to protect under Ohio intellectual property law. This protection allows you to reap the full benefits of your business concepts and prevents others from unfairly using them.

Intellectual property refers to ideas that are owned by you as an individual or as a company. Although your intellectual property is protected under Ohio intellectual property law from the moment you create it, you should register to create an official record of your ideas and more easily protect them should a conflict ever arise.

The 3 most common forms of intellectual property under Ohio IP law are:

1. Trademark, for trade names or logos.

2. Copyright, for artistic works such as published work.

3. Patent, for unique inventions under intellectual property in Ohio.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Choose the best protection under intellectual property law in Ohio

To protect your intellectual property, first decide what type it is. Trademarks refer to a name, phrase, or logo that identifies your business. It can include words only, a particular look or font or even a color scheme. A copyright protects the specific form in which your ideas are recorded and is used to protect literary and artistic works. Finally, patents protect your inventions and are used for physical devices or abstract concepts, such as computer software algorithms or business methods.

I recommend: Start with the Intellectual Property Center of FindLaw, which outlines the basics of intellectual property and offers a wide menu of topics to help you begin to register your intellectual property in Ohio. The Intellectual Property Resource Center of Netpreneur is also an excellent resource for your initial research. Review the helpful information at the United States Patent and Trademark Office or the United States Copyright Office.

Register your intellectual property in Ohio

It is essential for your small business to patent your ideas or register your trademarks or copyrights. This allows your small business to access the full power of the courts in protecting your valuable assets. In general, intellectual property is registered on the federal level. However, in Ohio you may also register your trademarks through the State of Ohio.

I recommend: Check the Trademark Electronic Search System to ensure your proposed trademark is not registered, then register online through the Trademark Electronic Application System. For your copyright, register through the United States Copyright Office. Register your trademark in the state of Ohio through the Ohio Secretary of the State.

Let a lawyer guide you through Ohio intellectual property law

Consult with Ohio intellectual patent attorneys in Ohio for advice about protecting your intellectual property. An Ohio patent, which may involve escrow laws, has nuances that are often best left to intellectual property law firms in Ohio that are familiar with filing your type of technology.

I recommend: To find intellectual property lawyers in Ohio, visit Lawyers.com, or see HG.org for an Ohio patent attorney. Read a complete guide to registering your trademark or service mark at the Ohio Secretary of the State Business Filings. Find the Ohio Revised Code regulating Ohio marks at LaWriter.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Form an intellectual property committee under the guidance of an Ohio intellectual property law firm to address all of the intellectual property you have.
• •  Create an invention disclosure/submission procedure to capture the innovations created by your employees.
• •  Implement an invention record keeping procedure within your business.
• •  Create, document and enforce internal security procedures to track and secure your important information.