Infringement

Anyone who uses the intellectual property of another without proper authorization is said to have engaged in infringement of that property. Traditionally, an intellectual property owner’s remedy for such unauthorized use would be a lawsuit for injunctive and monetary relief. Federal law provides that lawsuits for patent and copyright infringement must be brought in federal court. Trademark infringement suits for federally registered trademarks may be brought in either federal or state court. Trademark infringement suits for state trademark registrations or common law marks are generally brought in state court unless there is diversity of citizenship and a minimum amount of damages is involved.