Protecting Your Company’s Ideas and Creations: A Guide for High School Students

– Patents protect inventions and can be three types: utility, design, and plant.
– Patents are protected through registration with the USPTO and international registrars, as well as through license agreements.
– Copyrights protect original works of authorship and can be registered with the U.S. Copyright Office and international counterparts. – Trademark law protects brand names, logos, slogans, and trade dress from being used by competitors in a confusingly similar way.
– Geographically-limited trademark protections arise automatically upon use in the United States, while nationwide protection can be obtained through registration with the USPTO.
– Trade secret law protects proprietary information that does not qualify for patent or copyright protection through secrecy and internal controls.
– Trade secrets are not subject to registration and must be protected through effective internal controls and contractual restrictions.

https://www.gs2law.com/blog/how-to-recognize-and-protect-your-companys-ip-before-its-too-late/