
There is significant overlap between copyright and trademark protection. Some material, such as logos and packaging, can be protected both under trademark and copyright laws.
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There is significant overlap between copyright and trademark protection. Some material, such as logos and packaging, can be protected both under trademark and copyright laws.
Read More “Protecting Your Brand through Copyright”

The “Most Favored Nation” or “MFN” clause, in business parlance, most often refers to a risk mitigating technique whereby a contracting party is guaranteed to get the best deal available, now and in the future. What it means is “we’ll enter into this deal now, but if I give a better deal to someone else, you’ll get the same deal.” Today’s post will discuss the application and crafting of a “Most Favored Nation” clause.
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Creating a New York Limited Liability Company (LLC) can be a challenge. This post explains step by step how to form an LLC under New York law. It is meant to assist those who want to form a New York LLC without a lawyer, accountant or online document preparation company, and provides the basic legal forms to do so.
While getting the appropriate legal support from a lawyer is always recommended, having a lawyer, accountant or online company help you form a NY LLC is not always necessary. Online companies essentially charge a few hundred dollars to help you fill out a form with your own input, plus a few hundred more for filing fees. Lawyers charge somewhat more, but are able to give legal advice and craft your New York LLC documents to your specific needs. However, cash is often tight for an entrepreneur embarking on a new enterprise, and some choose to go with an online company to save on cost. We understand and want to provide you the basic tools to form a NY LLC as cheaply as possible — by doing it yourself!
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The last post, “How do I get Copyright Protection?,” gave an overview of what is copyright, what can be copyrighted, and how you can obtain copyright protection in the United States and internationally. Most significantly, we discussed how you get copyright protection automatically for copyrightable stuff, and that copyright registration and copyright notices (e.g., using the © symbol) are not necessary to obtain copyright protection, but do confer benefits.
Today, as promised, we will discuss copyright notices and registration further. Specifically, this post will explain

Your intellectual creations can be some of your most important assets. Copyright protection can help protect these creations from being used or replicated without your permission. Today’s post will explain the following:

A corporation or Limited Liability Company (LLC) is a huge personal liability shield against the world. This is, perhaps, the main reason for a business owner to form a corporation (i.e. “incorporate”) or an LLC. Today’s post aims to describe what limited liability protection is about, why you may want it for your business, and some things to keep in mind to stay protected.
The protection offered by a limited liability entity, such as a corporation or LLC, arises from the legal personality of the entity. The law recognizes these entities as “persons” separate from their owners. Just as one person generally cannot be held responsible for the actions of another, so too are owners of a corporation or LLC generally not responsible for what could be considered the entity’s “actions.” The concept of legal personality can be traced far back to ancient Rome.
Read More “Why Form an LLC or Incorporate? – Understanding & Protecting the Limited Liability Shield”

Not too long ago, a colleague and budding entrepreneur expressed to me that new businesses would find it helpful to have a legal checklist for reference. So to commemorate my first post on this blog, I’m providing an annotated checklist for startups and new businesses.
A PDF version that you can download and print is also available
Read More “Legal Checklist for New Businesses & Startups”