Trade Dress

Southern California Intellectual Property Attorneys

Los Angeles Trade Dress Infringement Lawyers

Certain products and brands have become immediately recognizable in our culture because of the way they are packaged. For example, the Absolut Vodka Company has built a very successful marketing campaign based almost solely on the packaging of their product and the distinctive shape of their bottle has become instantly recognizable as a result. Likewise, the shiny gold box with the gold bow on top and placed slightly off-center signals, loud and clear, that the chocolates inside are made by Godiva.

Image, it seems, can in fact be everything.

Although trade dress is not discussed nearly as much as other intellectual property assets—it is just as important in many ways. If you have questions about a particular product and the issue of trade dress, contact the Irvine, California, offices of Oswald & Yap.

How Can We Help?

With more than twenty-five years of valuable experience, Oswald & Yap is an excellent choice to help you make the most of your trademark and trade dress assets. Our intellectual property attorneys represent both U.S. and foreign clients and are well-versed in the laws governing trade dress and unregistered trademarks.

The primary requirement for packaging, branding, or image to be considered "protect-able" is that it must be immediately recognizable in the mind of the consumer. However, this does not mean that recognition has to be on the same scale as a product like Coca-Cola. For example, if your company makes a widget and has been packaging that product in such a distinctive way that it has become instantly recognizable among widget buyers—someone else cannot market their widget in a way that will likely create confusion among consumers.

Our firm advises clients of trade dress assets and issues that relate to their businesses, and, provides services to prevent them from infringing on the trade dress assets of others. Likewise, our lawyers also represent clients in enforcing the protections of their own.

Over 25 Years Helping Clients Maximize the Value of Their IP Assets

Listed in the Bar Registry of Preeminent Lawyers since 1985, Oswald & Yap has ABOTA Certified (less than 3 percent of trial attorneys nationally) and AV Rated* attorneys on staff ready to assist you with all of your intellectual property concerns. Contact our offices today.

We offer a free in-office consultation to all prospective clients and a willingness to work with clients regarding fee arrangements and costs. We are a minority-owned firm and WMBE certified business that is proud to serve clients from a wide range of nationalities. Our attorneys are fluent in Spanish, Korean, Mandarin, German, Taiwanese, Arabic, and French.

*CV, BV and AV are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the confidential opinions of members of the Bar and the Judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell Ratings fall into two categories – legal ability and general ethical standards.