DA VINCI’S NOTEBOOK
Is it a law firm or a product development company? It’s both.
Da Vinci’s Notebook is a full service intellectual property law firm. Da Vinci’s Notebook can assist companies with all aspects of the product life cycle. During the early stages of a product’s life, the emphasis will be on the ability of a company to use a product; and if so, then the early acquisition of intellectual property related to the product. Da Vinci’s Notebook doggedly pursues exclusivity for its clients in applicable fields of protection, including utility patents, design patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. Da Vinci’s Notebook further assists with the creation of investor materials, and business consulting related to product positioning. During the intermediate stages of a product’s life, Da Vinci’s Notebook is there to monetize the intellectual property rights associated with a product. Monetization can assume the form of a license or enforcement. Da Vinci’s Notebook has represented plaintiffs and defendants as legal counsel in federal courts throughout the nation, and has coordinated international litigation. At the later stages of a product’s life cycle, Da Vinci’s Notebook can assist with the intricacies of passing a product or business on to another acquiring business.
Da Vinci’s Notebook is a full service intellectual property law firm. Da Vinci’s Notebook can assist companies with all aspects of the product life cycle. During the early stages of a product’s life, the emphasis will be on the ability of a company to use a product; and if so, then the early acquisition of intellectual property related to the product. Da Vinci’s Notebook doggedly pursues exclusivity for its clients in applicable fields of protection, including utility patents, design patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. Da Vinci’s Notebook further assists with the creation of investor materials, and business consulting related to product positioning. During the intermediate stages of a product’s life, Da Vinci’s Notebook is there to monetize the intellectual property rights associated with a product. Monetization can assume the form of a license or enforcement. Da Vinci’s Notebook has represented plaintiffs and defendants as legal counsel in federal courts throughout the nation, and has coordinated international litigation. At the later stages of a product’s life cycle, Da Vinci’s Notebook can assist with the intricacies of passing a product or business on to another acquiring business.
TECHNOLOGY PROTECTION
Da VInci’s Notebook assists its clients in acquiring and maintaining its exclusivity via patent rights and trade secrets. Patents are an attractive form of protection as they last for 20 years from the date of filing, and impose severe penalties on intellectual property free riders; however, patent rights are hotly contested by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Trade secrets are an attractive form of protection as they last for as long as the product or process can be maintained as a secret; however, trade secrets are no barrier to reverse engineering or second-in-time inventors.
Fields
TOBACCO
As prosecution and litigation counsel to an international tobacco company, Da Vinci’s Notebook has encountered and solved a wide variety of intellectual property issues. It has been this company’s honor to assist a world leader solidify its position with a sizable IP portfolio.
LASERS
Everything is shrinking, and the processes for making these smaller products are often more revolutionary than the products themselves. The use of femtosecond lasers with advanced chemical and physical techniques has led to a new age in product design.
COMMUNICATIONS
The race to increase the density and speed of communications is competitive. Every advance in rate is buoyed by a legion of advances in error correction, modulation, and data structuring.
CYBERSECURITY
Notions of cybersecurity are changing as rapidly as the technology. The competition between the sheepdogs and the wolves is dizzying. The dire consequences of a data breach practically demand complex layers of security; but as the complexity of security increase, more exploits seem to be available.
WITH ROOM FOR YOURS…
Da Vinci’s Notebook is waiting to assist you...
BRAND PROTECTION
Da Vinci’s Notebook assists its clients in acquiring and protecting goodwill via trademark rights. Trademarks may be claimed by users who apply a distinctive designation (i.e., word, phrase, or symbol) to a good or service in commerce. It is often a good idea to registrar a trademark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office; it is an interesting twist that most trademarks are not registered. Da Vinci’s Notebook screens, acquires registrations for, and defends trademark rights . Da Vinci’s Notebook has prosecuted hundreds of trademarks in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and has appeared in federal courts throughout the nation to enforce Lanham Act claims of unfair competition.
TRADEMARK PROSECUTION
Trademark registration conveys rights throughout the United States and its territories as of the date of filing. It is a powerful tool to clip infringement throughout U.S. commerce irrespective of your company’s presence in a region. Trademark registrations also permit a greater array of damages should you ever need to enforce your rights in court.
TRADEMARK ANALYSIS
The truth that “There is nothing new under the Sun” applies to trademarks. It is rare that a company chooses a name that lacks prior commercial use; instead the trick is to determine the effect of the earlier use on the junior user whether use by the junior party is permissible. Contrariwise, another user may someday use your trademark and there’s a multi-factor analysis related whether infringement exists. Context matters.
PROTECTION OF CREATIVE WORKS
SOFTWARE
BOOKS
MUSIC
VISUAL ARTS
AUDIOVISUAL WORKS
CHOREOGRAPHY
PHOTOGRAPHY
BOOKS
MUSIC
VISUAL ARTS
AUDIOVISUAL WORKS
CHOREOGRAPHY
PHOTOGRAPHY
Da Vinci’s Notebook assists its clients in acquiring and protecting expressive rights via copyright rights. Copyright may be claimed by anyone that creates an original work of expression that is affixed in a tangible medium. There is not much that a court won’t consider to be a tangible medium, and the amount of creativity required for copyright is but a trifling amount. Although there is no requirement to register a work with the Library of Congress to obtain a copyright, a copyright filing or registration (depending on your jurisdiction) is required to enforce your creative rights in court. Da Vinci’s Notebook has worked with a wide range of artists, from software designers to novelists to secure and defend their rights.
ENFORCEMENT AND MONETIZATION
Litigation and licensing, licensing and litigation…the concepts are more closely related than one would presume. Litigation is a practical necessity much of the time - which is a shame, because, contrary to popular opinion, it rarely results in a cash-positive outcome. Instead, businesses usually litigate because they see no other option. Licenses are the rights that a business takes usually only because its activities are, or would be, in the crosshairs of a potential litigant armed with superior rights.
When you are ready to litigate, Da Vinci’s Notebook does it as well as anyone. Litigation by the principals of Da Vinci’s Notebook have resulted not only in numerous victories, but also numerous published precedential federal opinions.
When you are ready to litigate, Da Vinci’s Notebook does it as well as anyone. Litigation by the principals of Da Vinci’s Notebook have resulted not only in numerous victories, but also numerous published precedential federal opinions.
Litigators for Da Vinci’s Notebook have appeared in state and federal courts throughout the nation to litigate intellectual property and other commercial rights. Our litigation has resulted in numerous successful final orders, preliminary injunctions, seizures, and damage awards. The bulk of our litigation takes place in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, “the Rocket Docket.”
There are few fields in which Da Vinci’s Notebook has not crafted a license - and fewer geographic regions. We hope someday to craft a license for the region of Antarctica to close the loop. Licensing success is primarily determined by intense investigation into the nature and circumstances of the needs of both parties. With only a few interesting exceptions, the only licenses worth having are those in which both parties are prosperous and happy due to the existence of the license.
BUSINESS CONSULTING
PRODUCT STRATEGY ANALYSIS
The adage about the mousetrap is a lie. No one will beat a path to your door because you have a better product. Get ready for an unrelenting fight for market share. Your entry into the market will be begin with a barrage of “No.” Most of the denials will not be related to the merits of your product, but instead upon other factors such as (i) lack of proven track record, (ii) reluctance to be an early adopter, (iiI) lack of familiarity with your product/service type, (iv) an inability to find a particular line item in the budget that correlates to your product/service, etc. The surest way to overcome early rejections is to understand the position of your product in the market and understand how your target customer purchases products similar to yours.
BRAND STRATEGY AND POSITIONING
Your brand cannot be ‘all things, to all men.’ If there is a spot in the market for your product you need to find it right away. Da Vinci’s Notebook works though outside affiliates to ensure that you understand your target consumer and that all the components of your brand reach him. Messaging, packaging, advertising, and communications are all components of a single, unified theme. Da Vinci’s Notebook can assist by aggregated a marketing solution for that includes top shelf consultants that ensure that you receive the branding that you need.
PRODUCT FABRICATION
PRODUCT AND BRAND SCREENING
The number of brand and products that undergo trademark or patent screening is surprising. Moreso for brands; the costs associated with a rudimentary screening to ensure the availability of a brand is relatively modest. The costs associated with screening a product to ensure freedom to use the product without fear of patent infringement tends to be orders of magnitude more significant. Da Vinci’s Notebook can assist you to ensure that you can use the brands
PROTOTYPE/CAD DEVELOPMENT
Da Vinci’s Notebook sports a modest workshop that can assist you with prototype development and proof of concept testing. Da Vinci’s Notebook has developed airflow devices and casings for security equipment, and has the capability to fabricate low-technology complements to a broad range of devices. For more complicated components, Da Vinci’s Notebook works with a host of prototype affiliates and molding professionals to advance your idea through its earliest stages.
INTEGRITY INVESTIGATIONS
IMPORT/EXPORT MONITORING
A significant portion of infringing articles/devices enter U.S. commerce from overseas. Fair enough; U.S. intellectual property rights stop at the border and many countries have dim views of property rights. Once unlawful goods, whether direct infringements or gray market goods, appear at and pass through the border, most of the damage has been done. The best option is to detect the unlawful goods in transit and stop them at the border. Once litigation starts, a good return on investment is dubious.
DATA SYSTEM INTEGRITY AUDITS
(sigh)…Cybersecurity. It is best left to professionals, and unfortunately, those professionals are rarely in one place at one time. Da Vinci’s Notebook works with some of the finest cybersecurity professionals in the world in the performance of its cybersecurity litigation, data integrity audits, and other related endeavors. If you need a security team fast, Da Vinci’s Notebook can aid you.
ABOUT US
M. Keith Blankenship
Intellectual Property Attorney
Commercial Litigator
keith@dnotebook.com
CONTACT US
Da Vinci’s Notebook, LLC
10302 Bristow Center Dr
No. 52
Bristow, VA 20136
703-570-6969 (o)
keith@dnotebook.com
10302 Bristow Center Dr
No. 52
Bristow, VA 20136
703-570-6969 (o)
keith@dnotebook.com