Unfair Competition
Unfair
Competition is a form of intellectual property
protection relating to actions which cause economic
injury to a business through deceptive or otherwise
unfair acts. The purpose of unfair competition law
is to protect consumers and competitors from deceptive
or unethical conduct in commerce. The law of unfair
competition emerged from the common law, and today
there are numerous federal and state statutes which
are designed to protect valuable business information
and competition.
Unlike
other areas of intellectual property protection, such
as patent and copyright law, unfair competition claims
are not pre-empted by federal law and may involve
both federal and state causes of action. Unfair competition
law encompasses a variety of types of commercial or
business conduct including:
Acts
of Trademark and Trade Dress Infringement
False Advertising
Dilution
Trade Secret Theft
Other
protections available include:
Antitrust
Federal Unfair Competition
False Advertising Under Section 43(a) of the Lanham
Act,
Federal and State Computer Fraud Statutes
State Contract and Employment Law Covering Inventions
and Non-Disclosure and Non-Compete Agreements
Trade Secret Laws
Laws Recognizing the Right of Publicity
Unfair competition law often overlaps with other areas
of intellectual property protection such as patents,
trademarks and copyrights. To this end, Kelly Lowry
& Kelley, LLP is well experienced to handle these
matters. KLK attorneys have drafted agreements and
licenses protecting the intellectual property assets
of its clients and litigated on behalf of its clients
when necessary to resolve questions of competitive
activities.
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