European Patent Convention. A 1973 treaty allowing a patent applicant to obtain patent protection in all signatory nations, mostly European Union members, through a single blanket filing and examination procedure. • The Community patent is valid in any member nation in which it is registered. The procedure is administered through the European Patent Office in […]
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brand. Trademarks. A name or symbol used by a seller or manufacturer to identify goods or services and to distinguish them from competitors’ goods or services; the term used colloquially in business and industry to refer to a corporate or product name, a business image, or a mark, regardless of whether it may legally qualify
lesion (lee-zh[schwa]n). 1. An injury or wound; esp., an area of wounded tissue. 2. Civil law. Loss from another’s failure to perform a contract; the injury suffered by one who did not receive the equivalent value of what was bargained for. La. Civ. Code art. 2589. — Also spelled (in sense 2) lésion. [Cases: Vendor
agricultural-disparagement law. A statute designed to protect food producers from and provide remedies for pecuniary harm resulting from false and malicious reports of food contamination. • A typical statute applies to false and disparaging public statements implying or claiming that a perishable food product is unsafe for human consumption. It typically applies when the speaker
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Green River ordinance. A local licensing law that protects residents from unwanted peddlers and salespersons, typically by prohibiting door-to-door solicitations without prior consent. • The ordinance takes its name from Green River, Wyoming, which enacted the first such law in the early 20th century before others came into vogue during the 1930s and 1940s throughout
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A species in danger of becoming extinct; esp., under federal law, a species that is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant part of its range. • Federal law excludes from the definition a species of the class Insecta if the Environmental Protection Agency determines that it constitutes a pest whose protection would
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Trademarks. The overall appearance and image in the marketplace of a product or a commercial enterprise. • For a product, trade dress typically comprises packaging and labeling. For an enterprise, it typically comprises design and decor. If a trade dress is distinctive and nonfunctional, it may be protected under trademark law. — Also termed get-up;
Lanham Act (lan-[schwa]m). A federal trademark statute, enacted in 1946, that provides for a national system of trademark registration and protects the owner of a federally registered mark against the use of similar marks if any confusion might result or if the strength of a strong mark would be diluted. • The Lanham Act’s scope
A mortgage clause that does not protect the mortgagee if the insured mortgagor does something to invalidate the policy (such as committing fraud). • This type of clause has been largely superseded by the mortgage-loss clause, which affords the mortgagee more protection. — Also termed simple mortgage clause. Cf. MORTGAGE-LOSS CLAUSE.
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