top of page

Trademark Ownership


Trademark Ownership

A common question received by business law attorney Briana Robertson pertains to trademark ownership. Many new business owners ask who should own their brand trademark. The common misconception is that an individual person should own the trademark. When in reality, whoever will be using your trademark, which in most cases will be the business entity, is the one who should hold ownership. If you have already created an LLC then your trademark should be owned by the LLC. If you are still in the process of setting up your business LLC, corporation, or other business entity registering your trademark in your name is acceptable until the business entity is established. The purpose of establishing an LLC or other business entity is to keep your business separate from your personal assets. Therefore, once your business entity is established you would then transfer ownership of the trademark from yourself to the business. Doing so is for your protection and your business’ protection, especially when pertaining to lawsuits and creditors. When creating an LLC or other legal business entity it is important that you make a clear separation between you as an individual and your business. This means you do not want to cross your business entity with your personal assets. When you and your business act as one and the same this could be seen as ‘piercing the corporate veil’ and opening the door for someone to sue you and your business. Keeping things separate is essential for legal protection. Essentially when it comes to trademark ownership whoever is going to be the primary user of the trademark is the one who should own it. If your LLC is going to be using the trademark then register it to your LLC. The only reason you wouldn’t do this is that your LLC has not yet been created which would be considered an intent to use and temporarily is registered in

your name.

Schedule a Consultation

Do you need help protecting your business and growing your brand? Attorney Briana Robertson is your brand advocate! Book your consultation today.

2 views0 comments

Comments


bottom of page