How to Hire a Trademark or Copyright Lawyer
I constantly see companies being misled into hiring the wrong lawyers for trademark and copyright disputes. Trademark and copyright are highly specialized areas of the law and can easily be mishandled. Unfortunately, many lawyers mislead clients into thinking they have more trademark or copyright dispute experience than they actually have. As of today, I have four different cases in which the opposing parties’ attorneys are mishandling their cases. While this is good for my clients, the opposing parties are unknowingly in jeopardy – not only will they lose their cases but they may end-up being responsible for paying my clients’ attorney fees.
If a lawyer tells you he/she has trademark or copyright litigation experience, you should ask for a list of all trademark or copyright cases they have handled. A lawyer who has been honest with you about his or her experience will not be insulted by this request. You should also use the below steps to verify the lawyer has sufficient experience.
Use PACER for Trademark And Copyright Lawsuits
If you need to hire a trademark or copyright lawyer for a lawsuit (aka a trademark or copyright litigator) you should ask the lawyer for a list of trademark lawsuits he or she has handled. A lawyer can easily produce a list for you by accessing PACER (the Public Access to Court Electronic Records). If a lawyer will not do this for you, be careful. Non-lawyers can also conduct their own limited searches on PACER. Note that the federal courts code trademark lawsuits are under the number “840” and copyright lawsuits under “820” – so look for those codes.
If you need help assessing your lawyer’s trademark or copyright experience, feel free to email me: David@Lilenfeld.com.
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