Trademark law brief history and international scope

Trademark Law Trademark law governs the use of a device (including a word, phrase, symbol, product shape, or logo) by a manufacturer or merchant to identify its goods and to distinguish those goods from those made or sold by another. Trademark law also governs service marks, which are used on services rather than goods. In the United States, certain common law trademark rights stem merely from the use of a mark. However, to obtain the …

…as to the source or sponsorship of the goods or services involved. Multiple parties may use the same mark only where the goods of the parties are not so similar as to cause confusion among consumers. Under common law trademark rights, the same marks can be used when there is no geographic overlap in the use of the marks. Federally registered marks have a nation-wide geographic scope, and therefore are protected throughout the United States.