Question about Trademark Infringement, Business Name

[hyphen0]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
WA

I was planning on naming my new business "Somber Widgets" (where Widget is a generic term) but did some searching and found that "Somber Widget" has been trademarked in another state.

How close can I get to my originally desired name without getting into potential trouble? Is it enough to have the "s" in Widgets? Could I call the business "Somberly Great Widgets" and be worry free?

Thanks for your time!

 

[quincy]

If you have already located another business operating under the same or a similar name to the one you had wanted to use for your business, it would probably be wise for you to pick another name entirely. The adding of of an "s" or an "ly" or an adjective to an existing trademark is very likely not enough to protect you from a trademark infringement action.

Creating a new and unique name for your business at the start will help you to avoid legal issues later.

The strongest trademarks (the ones that receive the most protection under trademark law) tend to be invented words used to identify a product or service (such as Xerox and Kodak and Pepsi and Tylenol) or words chosen to identify a product or service that are unrelated to the product or service being offered (these are arbitrary words such as those chosen by Penguin for books, Arrow for shirts, Beefeater for gin).

The weakest marks tend to be descriptive of the product or service (like, Fast Oil Change), or reflect the geographic area (like, Michigan Cherries), or are family names (like, Tom's Market).

You may wish to keep the above in mind when choosing an identifier for your business.

There is no way to be entirely "worry free" in any business, however, even when you pick the perfect name. Probably the best way to avoid problems with a business is to have all business plans reviewed by a business law professional. And then make sure you have adequate insurance to cover any problems that may arise despite your best efforts to avoid problems.

I wish you good luck with your business.

 

[hyphen0]

If you have already located another business operating under the same or a similar name to the one you had wanted to use for your business, it would probably be wise for you to pick another name entirely. The adding of of an "s" or an "ly" or an adjective to an existing trademark is very likely not enough to protect you from a trademark infringement action.

Creating a new and unique name for your business at the start will help you to avoid legal issues later.

The strongest trademarks (the ones that receive the most protection under trademark law) tend to be invented words used to identify a product or service (such as Xerox and Kodak and Pepsi and Tylenol) or words chosen to identify a product or service that are unrelated to the product or service being offered (these are arbitrary words such as those chosen by Penguin for books, Arrow for shirts, Beefeater for gin).

The weakest marks tend to be descriptive of the product or service (like, Fast Oil Change), or reflect the geographic area (like, Michigan Cherries), or are family names (like, Tom's Market).

You may wish to keep the above in mind when choosing an identifier for your business.

There is no way to be entirely "worry free" in any business, however, even when you pick the perfect name. Probably the best way to avoid problems with a business is to have all business plans reviewed by a business law professional. And then make sure you have adequate insurance to cover any problems that may arise despite your best efforts to avoid problems.

I wish you good luck with your business.

Thank you very much for the advice, I really appreciate your time!

 

[quincy]

You're welcome, hyphen0.

I wish you much success with your new business.