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TCP Law FAQ
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What does TCP Law do, and what types of IP protection does the firm offer?
TCP Law, PLLC is a solo practice New York firm specializing exclusively in intellectual property law, working with clients throughout the United States and internationally to develop and enforce their trademark, copyright, and patent rights. The firm offers four core services: trademark prosecution — preparing, filing, and prosecuting trademark applications with the USPTO to protect business names, logos, and slogans; patent protection — auditing existing brand and IP assets, identifying risks, and building a protection strategy; copyright registration — registering creative works including product photos, music, and writing to unlock the right to sue for damages; and enforcement — sending cease and desist letters and pursuing strategic litigation to stop infringement and recover damages. The firm also assists clients accused of infringing others' intellectual property rights. A free initial consultation is available, and TCP Law is a 5-star rated, USPTO-registered practice.
What are the real risks of operating a business without a registered trademark?
There are four concrete risks that TCP Law's landing page identifies for businesses operating without a federally registered trademark. First, a competitor can register your brand name with the USPTO first — gaining stronger nationwide rights and potentially limiting your ability to use your own mark, even if you used it earlier. Second, without registration, infringement lawsuits are significantly more costly: federal registration grants nationwide presumption of ownership and access to statutory damages, while common law rights are limited in scope and harder to enforce. Third, counterfeit sellers can copy your brand online with less friction — platforms like Amazon and Etsy provide increasingly strong anti-counterfeit protections for trademarked brands with federal registrations, and without registration, takedown requests can be slower and less effective. Fourth, your brand's value becomes difficult to protect at the point of sale: unregistered trademarks can lower your business valuation, since buyers and investors value businesses with registered IP because it provides clear ownership, stronger protection, and real transferable value.
What does it mean that TCP Law offers a free consultation, and how quickly will I hear back?
TCP Law offers a free initial consultation with no obligation — you can schedule directly through the firm's website or call 917-612-1059. The landing page states specifically that you will know exactly where you stand within 24 hours of scheduling your free consultation with attorney John Laurence. This commitment reflects the firm's stated approach to direct, accessible client service: as the sole attorney on every matter, John Laurence personally handles all consultations rather than routing initial inquiries through intake staff. The free consultation is designed to give you a clear picture of your IP position and options before you make any decisions about moving forward.
Can a competitor legally register my brand name even if I've been using it for years?
Yes — and this is one of the most significant risks of operating without a federal trademark registration. If another party registers your brand name with the USPTO first, they may gain stronger nationwide rights, and you could face limits on using your own mark — even if you used it earlier under common law. Common law trademark rights arise from actual use in commerce and are geographically limited to the areas where the mark is actively used and recognized, while a federal registration provides a nationwide presumption of ownership from the filing date. This means a competitor who files a USPTO application for a confusingly similar name — even one you have been using locally for years — can potentially claim priority over you in markets where your common law presence is not established. Federal registration is the mechanism that secures your nationwide rights before someone else does.
Why does federal trademark registration matter for selling my business or attracting investors?
When selling a business, unregistered trademarks can lower your valuation — a direct commercial consequence that many business owners do not anticipate until they are already in a sale process. Buyers and investors value businesses with registered intellectual property because it provides clear ownership, stronger legal protection, and real transferable value. An unregistered trademark, by contrast, raises questions about the scope of the rights being acquired, the risk of third-party challenges, and whether the brand can be defended after the transaction closes. Federal trademark registration — which provides a clear, publicly recorded ownership interest in the mark — is one of the most straightforward ways to make a business's brand assets legible, defensible, and commercially valuable in a transaction context.
How does TCP Law help businesses that are being copied or counterfeited online?
TCP Law's enforcement practice addresses online copying and counterfeiting directly. Many major platforms, including Amazon and Etsy, provide increasingly strong anti-counterfeit protections for brands with federal trademark registrations — making registration a practical prerequisite for effective platform-level enforcement. Without registration, takedown requests can be slower and less effective. When someone is copying your brand, TCP Law sends cease and desist letters and pursues strategic litigation to stop the infringement and recover the damages owed. TCP Law also handles copyright enforcement for creative product photos, music, writing, and other original works — registering those works to unlock the right to sue for damages and pursue remedies when they are used without authorization.
What makes John Laurence different from a typical IP attorney?
John Laurence's background sets him apart in two specific ways that the page highlights directly. First, he holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from NYU Tandon School of Engineering and has hands-on engineering industry experience — meaning he understands inventions, brands, and businesses from the inside, not just from a legal perspective. Most IP attorneys understand the law; John also understands the technical subject matter clients bring to him. Second, he earned an LLM in Intellectual Property and Technology Law from Fordham University Law School — a post-J.D. graduate specialization in IP — and is a USPTO Registered Patent Attorney, licensed to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. As the sole attorney on every matter, clients deal directly with John on every aspect of their case — not a paralegal or first-year associate — and their IP strategy receives his full personal attention every time.
What happens if I'm already being sued or have received an infringement claim — can TCP Law help?
Yes — TCP Law assists clients accused of infringing others' intellectual property rights in addition to helping clients assert and protect their own rights. Whether you have received a cease and desist letter, are facing a USPTO proceeding, or are involved in federal litigation over trademark, copyright, or patent infringement, TCP Law can evaluate the strength and validity of the claim against you, assess your options and defenses, and help you develop an appropriate response strategy. The firm's enforcement practice works in both directions — asserting clients' IP rights against infringers and defending clients who have been accused of infringement. A free initial consultation is available to help you understand your exposure and options quickly.
Does TCP Law only work with businesses in New York City?
No — while TCP Law is a New York firm, it works with clients throughout the United States and internationally. Federal intellectual property matters — including USPTO trademark and patent prosecution, copyright registration, and federal IP enforcement — are national in scope and do not require the attorney or the client to be located in the same state. The landing page emphasizes that TCP Law offers secure nationwide protection, reflecting the fact that a federal trademark registration provides rights across the entire country, not just in New York. Whether you are a startup in California, an inventor in Texas, or a creator in Florida, TCP Law is equipped to handle your federal IP needs directly.
Is it a myth that protecting my brand is complicated, expensive, or only for large companies?
Yes — and TCP Law's landing page addresses this directly. The firm's position is that protecting a brand should not be complicated, regardless of your company's size. TCP Law handles every layer of brand legal protection — trademark prosecution, copyright registration, patent protection, and enforcement — so clients can focus on growing their business rather than managing IP complexity. The free initial consultation, 5-star rating across independent review platforms, and flexible billing structures including flat rate and installment options reflect a practice designed to be accessible to startups, independent inventors, small businesses, and creators — not just large corporations with dedicated legal departments. Every day a business operates without registered trademark protection is a day that risk accumulates, and the consultation is specifically designed to help you understand exactly where you stand and what it would take to address it.
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