2. The Questions: Explain why these are of interest to you. What specific concepts and terms were involved – in other words, what are the legal is

These questions were very important to me because these situations play a very important role in my future. These are things I have to definitely be careful as to how I incorporate them into business matters. I knew to a certain extent things I needed to do in order to protect my designs but I had no clue as to how I could be so easily taken advantage of without taking the proper steps to securing my design elements. The whole research project was so resourceful for me and I am extremely elated with the results I obtained from them!

LAW OFFICES OF
Aisha M. Johnson
(310) 642-0408 Fax (310) 642-4684



1. If I lose inspiration and go online and use someone else’s design, more than I intended to. Will I be safe from a lawsuit if I changed it enough so it isn’t exactly the same? What recourse do I have if the roles are reversed, if my work is the work being stolen?

No one is completely protected from a lawsuit. Copyright or trademark infringement ultimately will be determined by the judge or jury and to a degree the determination can be (subjective) based upon each individual circumstance. It is best not to use other peoples work and to make sure that you copyright and/or trademark your personal designs. Request for compensation, threat of a lawsuit, or an actual lawsuit seeking monetary damages are your options for recourse.

2. If I come up with an original idea during employment with a company, who owns the rights to it, myself or the company? Is there any way I can make it my own to sell to others?

It depends on what you have agreed to in your employment contract. In most instances, unless the contract states otherwise, the work will be owned by the company, your employer. You can only make it your own if your company is willing to make that agreement with you.

3. If I get caught hacking, what are the consequences.

Possible consequences are: termination from your employment, legal action against you for fraud, theft, copyright or trademark infringement, monetary damages/fine, and/or imprisonment.

4. If my spouse pays to set up my business and I ran everything, if we get a divorce does he have a claim to it?

In a community property state your business product and business earnings are subject to division with your spouse in the event of divorce unless there is a legally binding agreement entered into by the parties stating something different.

5. If I create a fashion design and displayed it at a trade show, and someone took that design and sold it as their own, can I sue that party and what are my chances of recovering my design?

You can always sue but whether you have a successful lawsuit will depend greatly on whether your design was protected by copyright or trademark and whether the damages were ascertainable.
6. If I made a logo that had a had a trademark to one of the letters and another marketing company used that letter exactly how it is displayed/designed but used the letter in a logo but did not have the same complete logo then what could happen if I take legal action.

It would be up to the court (judge or jury) to determine whether the copy was an infringement upon your trademark. They may consider whether or not the copy was too similar or misleading to the public.

7. Can packaging look exactly the same as other products on a retail shelf (ex. Medicine products Color, Shape, Look). **EXCLUDES the name.

It can but again if a lawsuit resulted it would be up to the court (judge or jury) to determine whether the copy was an infringement upon your trademark. They may consider whether or not the copy was too similar or misleading to the public. Why expose yourself unnecessarily to potential legal action.

8. Can you sue a company that advertises a commercial which sells a product that has a disclaimer at the bottom but don’t give you enough time to read the disclaimer and it ends up affecting your life or puts you in burden?

Anyone can file a lawsuit. I am uncertain as to whether or not this type of lawsuit is likely to prevail.

9. How much do you charge to read a contract and advise/interpret it for me?

It depends on the length of the contract but my hourly rate is $300.00.

10. What rights do I retain when using company software?

Again, it depends on the contract that you have with the company/employer but most likely your rights will be very limited. The company is going to look out for their own financial interest and you must look out for yours.

5. Your own argument and opinions. Did you agree or disagree with the rulings. Provide some authority for your argument such as quotes from the

I agreed with everything my attorney had to say in reference to the rulings she gave me. I found some of them to be very obvious in her explanations and extremely fair. Although she was not an patent attorney which is “attorneys that must be licensed to practice law and also be licensed by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, (USPTO) to practice before it” I felt like she was spot on in her delivery. We discussed the possibility of double patenting pg 56“two patents which are obtained on (or claim) a single invention) and how this could possibly happen when working so close to an individual or company. She informed me to always be careful of the contract. Now there is the possibility of co-inventors pg 43“where an invention is attributable to the creative effort of more than one person” that she explained also needs to be carefully documented. Once I started to really look into all of this I noticed that copyrighting your designs at the date of invention “the date an inventor can prove that the invention was built and tested” is critical to do. When you want to take legal action on something like infringement pg 60“when someone makes, uses, or sells items covered by the claims of an in-force patent without the patent owner’s permission” it is important that you have all the necessary information to defend yourself. This is the point where you would make and infringement action “a lawsuit alleging that one or more parties (defendants) have, without permission, made, used, or sold an invention protected under a patent owned by the party bringing the lawsuit.” All of these things you may take lightly but prove to be critical when you are trying to defend yourself. You could face willful infringement pg 135 “occurs when someone deliberately and in disregard of the patent owner’s right, copies a patented invention.” This is what I thought mattered most in my conversation with my attorney!
10th edition Patent, Copyright & Trademark by Ralph Warner

1. Legal Authority: How I made contact, found this person and why they are a good choice

When I discovered that we had to find an attorney I found it rather difficult in the beginning to find anyone who would actually give me the time and energy when looking into this situation and being helpful in answering the 10 questions that I had come up with within my group. I initially wanted to find a patent attorney who could help contribute to some things I wanted to know about group work. I found that coauthors’ are pg 39 “two or more people who have contributed significant creative input to a work of expression are legally considered coauthors”. Well I did not have any luck with finding a patent attorney but my search led me to an even more amazing attorney name Aiesha Johnson. She is a probate, business formations, trusts and wills attorney. I discussed a lot with her. Another one of our topics she helped me understand was derivative work which is pg 47 “based upon preexisting material to which enough original creative work has been added so that the new work represents an original work of authorship.” I felt she was the best attorney for me because throughout our conversation we had so much in common and she related so much with me and what I was trying to do in order to enhance my career. What she did focus on a lot is false representation in copyright registration application which is pg 36“a deliberate lie on a copyright registration form, such as a false statement that no preexisting works are included in the work being registered, may invalidate the legal effects and benefits of registration”. She informed me that this is taken very seriously and that I should be extremely careful. I really enjoyed working with her and look forward in building a future relationship with Ms. Johnson.
10th edition Patent Copyright & Trademark by Attorney Richard Stim

RE: First Amendment and the News

I saw the movie today in class and was very intrigued with the system dealt with the Supreme Court and how a female’s presence was conveyed. I think it is very valuable as a female to have someone of the same gender representing my voice and beliefs. Not only do I find it necessary for there to be females but also a wide variety of races as a whole to better understand what society is interested in and what values means most to those individual. The first amendment is very tricky but also very necessary for anyone who wants to express who they are as an individual and not have any legal ramifications to follow due to someone else’s opinion of who they are and what they believe. As for the news about the individual who wants to burn 12 copies of the Quran as symbol of sympathy to the victims of 9-11; I found this to be a bit outrageous. This individual is knowingly doing something that will indeed jeopardize the lives of so many innocent people. Here is where the first amendment becomes questionable. Do you allow someone to voice their opinion when you know it will be a violent effect on so many people lives? I’m not sure how I feel about this situation…..it all reminds me of how one individual can start so much hatred amongst an already conflicted world. Not to mention what type of backlash this will cause between the two cultures. This to me seems like a cry for media coverage to shine light on something that is significant to their culture and this is a bogus way of doing so!!!!

Attorney Questions

1. If my child was having a bad day and giving me a hard time and spanked him in public what would be the consequences as a parent?
2. What are your rights when an officer makes a traffic stop and requests a vehicle search when there are no probable cause or signs that you are doing anything wrong?
3. If I was to go into a Wal-Mart with $100 cash in my wallet and ended up shoplifting something, how would they treat the case if it was not my intent to steal to begin with?
4. I sell on eBay and there are buyers who make purchases and switch good parts for bad parts and claim that the item I sent them was DOA or NON FUNCTIONAL, what can happen to these buyers if they are caught or I have proof that the parts were swapped?
5. If someone stole my idea and I have all the digital media to prove it was my work, is this a possible case in court? Can I sue the company my stolen work was sold to?
6. A minor child was killed at the hands of the child’s mother. Child Protective Services were sent to the home several times prior to the child’s death to report child abuse against the now deceased victim. Would the father be able to sue child protective services for neglect to prevent this from happening and what would be his chance of winning the case?
7. If I create a fashion design and displayed it at a trade show , and someone took that design and sold it as their own, can I sue that party and what are my chances of recovering my design?
8. If I made a logo that had a had a trademark to one of the letters and another marketing company used that letter exactly how it is displayed/designed but used the letter in a logo but did not have the same complete logo then what could happen if I take legal action.
9. Can packaging look exactly the same as other products on a retail shelf (ex. Medicine products Color, Shape, Look). **EXCLUDES the name.
10. Can you sue a company that advertises a commercial which sells a product that has a disclaimer at the bottom but don’t give you enough time to read the disclaimer and it ends up affecting your life or puts you in burden?

WEEK 7 EOC:

I think the child protective laws concern me the most because these are innocent victims who can’t control what happens to them and protect their well being. I am constantly saddened by news of yet another child abused, abandoned, sexually molested, child trafficking, teenage pregnancy or even those kids who get themselves in trouble along the way due to the way they were raised. When you watch the news and see two murdered kids lying on the floor and their drunken parents being arrested, how does that make you feel? Then as the story progress you find that Child Protective Services has been out to the home several times and the Parents have this long list of criminal charges that clearly states how misfit they really are. I am beyond mortified and to say it lightly pissed as to how we as society constantly keep dropping the ball. Where are the laws protecting the welfare of our kids? If they are in place why are we not using them to avoid these tragic situations? The latest epidemic of abuse is obesity in our youth. I think that is just as much abuse to overfeed your kids as it is the beat them. You are lining them up for a future of health problems, self esteem issues along with social issues which sure will take them down. How can you explain that you had nothing to do with your six year old weighing in over 100 pounds or more….that’s crazy? This is unbelievable to me as to how this is occurring everyday and we are contributing to the problem and not the solution. I think that if I had to pick a topic then it will definitely be children because they are our future!!!

The Dark Trade

The Dark Trade documentary has really shocked me out of my ignorant shadow I have been unconsciously hiding behind. This was an unbelievable documentary for me to watch. It was captivating to see the details as to how corrupt criminals can be while preying on the weak and underprivileged. I was mortified looking at the way some of the people were being smuggled in to these countries. How terrifying of a feeling seeing this as a last recourse in making your life better. I always thought of illicit behavior very minimal only viewing counterfeits such as purses, sunglasses, luggage etc. as a means of the most popular way of this type of elicitation. I would have never imagined just how far you can go into this and turn over billions of profit and revenue. This was such an eye-opening experience for me to see how countries were fully dependent on the one thing that is killing the moral aspect of their native land. You have to decide as a government do I stop this illegal activity that is causing war on my native ground? Or do I continue to let it happen because it produces more revenue for the country than anything else? Some country leader’s answers to this imposing question were to do both. You as a citizen could not possibly know who to believe and or where to turn to. It is an impossible battle that is still embodying many places in a way most people could not believe. Crazy thing is that it is wrapped up like a pretty package only to find out there is a bomb inside waiting to explode on the naïve. I am a better person having watched this film and will thrive on being a part of the solution and not the problem!