Inspiring Entrepreneurs Episode 6: Intellectual Property with VT Law & Graduate School

In Episode 6 of "Inspiring Entrepreneurs: The Live Show," we dive into intellectual property for small business owners with our guest Brian Bailey from Bailey Legal Services and the Vermont Small Business Law Center at Vermont Law and Graduate School. 

The Vermont Small Business Law Center provides legal education as well as referrals to attorneys for up to 10 hours of free or low cost legal assistance to qualifying small businesses in Vermont, making legal support accessible and affordable.

This show covers several aspects of intellectual property, specifically copyrights, trademarks, and patents:
· Copyrights protect the expression of ideas, such as written works, music, and websites. Copyrights are automatically granted when a creative work is fixed in a tangible medium, but registration with the Copyright Office offers additional benefits.
· Trademarks protect brand identifiers like names, logos, and slogans. Businesses can use a ™ symbol to denote a claimed trademark, while a ® symbol is used once the trademark is officially registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
· Patents protect new inventions and are the most complex type of IP to obtain. They grant exclusive rights to make, use, sell, or import the invention for a limited time.

We also discuss trade secrets and the critical timing for filing patents to consider to protect your innovations early.

Resources Mentioned
· Vermont Small Business Law Center at Vermont Law & Graduate School: sblc.vermontlaw.edu
· U.S. Copyright Office: for copyright registration and information: copyright.gov
· U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: for trademark and patent registration and information: uspto.gov
· Creative Commons: provides free, open-source materials: creativecommons.org
· Additional IP webinars presented by the SBLC team:
  o De-Mystifying Intellectual Property: https://youtu.be/3TeMlucdBzs
  o Intellectual Property: Opportunities, Barriers and Challenges: https://youtu.be/JxJ8H6dHhek 

To find more resources and additional Inspiring Entrepreneurs episodes, please visit the Vermont Small Business Development Center’s website: vtbdc.org.

This show is made possible by the Community Navigator Pilot Program funded in part through a grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the SBA.