Most businesses are familiar with the concept of trademarking a word, logo, or slogan that serves as a unique identifier of their goods or services. After all, those are the markers that first come to mind when you think about a certain brand. But clients and practitioners often overlook another aspect of trademark protection relating to the total image or overall appearance of the brand. Trade dress is a subset of trademark law that refers…

Hashtags for women entrepreneurs and female owned business are becoming more prominent. Tag lines such as “Mom-preneur” #girlpreneur #womenceo, #girlboss #solopreneur #entreprenuerher abound in social media posts in the fashion industry. It is not easy to be a female entrepreneur but with the rise of e-commerce more and more women are forming businesses and successfully selling their products. According to Visa’s 2020 State of Female Entrepreneurship report, though 79% of female entrepreneurs in the U.S.…

How can you be an effective trustee appointed in a chapter 11 case if you cannot retain counsel when the case first begins? Well one bankruptcy court in North Carolina explained that a trustee’s retention of counsel is not an automatic right in some chapter 11 cases. First, let me lay the predicate. The New Act. There is a new category of chapter 11 trustees statutorily appointed under the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019…

In light of all the negative new stories in 2020 and the statistics about the rise in divorce rates, it does not hurt to point out that there is a plus side to the pandemic: more requests for premarital agreements means more people are choosing to get married. Whether through chosen quarantine in the early stages of a relationship or slowly getting to know a new love through FaceTime, 2020 has allowed many people to…

In most states, divorce and family law filings are public information unless specific actions are taken to protect the documents and hearing from the public eye. Whether an individual is a public figure, a celebrity, a high-powered executive or any person who does not want their private affairs available to the public, steps can be taken to maintain privacy. Prior to COVID most courtrooms were open to the public but unless you had hours to…

In Texas, small monetary disputes may be brought before the Justice of the Peace or “JP Courts.” Most Texans are probably unfamiliar with the term and know these courts simply as “Small Claims Courts.” However, recent changes to the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure have increased the amount of damages claimants may seek in JP Court, thereby raising the stakes in an arena practicing attorneys often call, the Wild West. On September 1, 2020, by…

Law360 reports that more than five thousand civil lawsuits have been filed by businesses seeking to recoup pandemic-related losses under their commercial policies. This new wave of litigation has called upon courts across the country to determine whether commercial policyholders have a right to recover for business losses in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Just last month, two federal courts reached conflicting decisions in similar suits brought by commercial policyholders against their insurers. The rulings,…