Ogden Glazer + Schaefer Interact

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Pamela Benedon
Andrew Factor
Jeffrey Glazer
Sam Kavalier
Katie Mahoney
Erin Ogden
Miranda Salazar
Collin Schaefer

Latest from Ogden Glazer + Schaefer Interact

Let’s say you just started a new business—congratulations! When you contribute to your new business at the outset, as well as when you contribute again at a later point, that capital contribution and those of the other owners need to be tracked somehow. Enter the Capital Account.

A Capital Account is a general ledger used to track contributions by owners and the valuation of the business. This applies to partnerships, LLCs, and S-Corps but not Corporations. Keep in mind…
Continue Reading Taking Capital Accounts into Account

Product placement, by which I mean the placement of branded products in films and TV shows, is a prevalent feature in media. As a viewer, I appreciate when product placement is used (in admittedly rare instances) to drive the plot. As a trademark attorney (since I can’t seem to turn it off), I appreciate the legal complications of product placement. Whether placement is an artistic choice or a cash-grab, there tends to be a beneficial relationship between filmmaker and…
Continue Reading Trademark and Product Placement

It is summer, and that means clerkships! Karen is our summer clerk. She is a double Badger, and with a week under her belt so far, she is proving to be absolutely Badger-ific! Learn more about her below.

Karen Perez-Wilson is an alumna of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a rising 2L at the University of Wisconsin Law School. Aside from being a full-time student, Karen is also the small business owner of Your Biggest Flan Desserts. In her…
Continue Reading Summer is Here: Introducing Karen Perez-Wilson

Big announcement! The United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO“) will begin issuing electronic registration certificates for all trademark applications filed from today onward.

What does this mean for you?: If you apply for a new trademark, the USPTO will provide your registration certificate digitally, rather than on paper, when the mark registers. However, if you want to have a nice, embossed, certificate for your wall – you can order one for $24.00.

Why is this change occurring?: You…
Continue Reading Print Your Own: Electronic Trademark Registration Certificates from the USPTO

I recently read an article about the “Milk Carton Rule.”  The story goes that if a person keeps leaving a bottle of milk out, stop expecting them to do otherwise. Once you do that, you will “solve the real problem” and buy a second bottle of milk so you always have non-spoiled milk.  The article and story has been an itch in my brain ever since.  I kept trying to figure out why it didn’t sit well because I…
Continue Reading What’s the Problem? No, really.

fine print enlarged with magnifying glass magnifier loupe

Who has time to read those pesky terms and conditions anyway? As it turns out…they are worth paying attention to, particularly if you are in a position to be writing them or using them on a website.

If you are a new business owner starting up a website, terms and conditions should matter to you. In particular, the presentation of the terms and conditions to visitors of the website is of great importance. Even if you are just a…
Continue Reading That’s a (click)Wrap

Welcome back to our discussion on 501(c)(3)’s, inurement, and excess benefit transactions! If you missed the last post that provided an overview of the rules related to this topic, you can find the link to the previous post here.  Now that the overview is out of the way, here are some ideas on how to avoid inurement issues

  • Avoid dealings between the organization and insiders within the organization.

    • Anytime a director, officer, or some other kind of insider…
    Continue Reading What’s the Deal with 501(c)(3)’s? (Part 2)

    Confident mature woman cleans up her neighborhood

    Non-profit organizations, by their nature, provide great value through their missions and services. That is at least part of the reason why they typically receive tax-exempt status, including under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). However, that tax-exempt status is fragile and contingent on meeting and maintaining certain requirements, and an organization can end up losing the status without intending to do so.

    One of the requirements of 501(c)(3) organizations is that “no part of the net…
    Continue Reading What’s the Deal with 501(c)(3)’s? (Part 1)

    I’m sure you’ve heard the news – the House of Representatives passed the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act on Friday April 1, 2022. The bill, if enacted, would remove marijuana (delta-9 THC) from the controlled substances list, impose a 5% tax on the sale of marijuana products nationwide, and provide mechanisms for the expungement of previous convictions, among other things.

    Now, the bill moves to the Senate and needs a bipartisan coalition super majority of Senators to agree in…
    Continue Reading Marijuana Legalization: Closer Than it’s Ever Been, But Still a Ways Away

    Last week I talked about how clients say they don’t know the difference between trademarks and copyrights.  Then I didn’t explain what it was.  I am here to solve that issue.

    A trademark is something that customers use to help with things like:

    • “Hey, I bought that thingy before, and I liked it.  I want it buy it again!”  OR
    • “Hey, I bought a thingy from those people, and I liked it. I want to buy more stuff from

    …
    Continue Reading So What Is The Difference?

    At the first meeting with a potential client, they often (somewhat shamefacedly) say, “I’m not really sure if I need a trademark or copyright or something else. I guess that I don’t know the difference.”  They say it like of course, they should know the difference. Why wouldn’t they know? I mean everyone but them knows, right?  But, of course, we know that is all a bunch of hooey.  This stuff is not on everyone’s “Things I Know” list. …
    Continue Reading The Information Desk Is Two Way

    Richard is joining OG+S as a Paralegal focused on IP Docket management and related activities while he completes his coursework at Madison College, Madison, WI.

    Prior to pursuing a career as a Paralegal, Richard gained valuable experiences as a technology practitioner in the financial services and consumer product good industries. He has worked in the disciplines of software engineering, testing, web development, and team leadership.

    Richard completed his undergraduate studies at Georgia State University. Some of his other training/certifications…
    Continue Reading Introducing Richard Mullings!

    Welcome back to the world of Secured Transactions and IP! A quick refresher from last week (link last week’s post?): lenders engage in “secured transactions” with a borrower who has put up collateral against that loan which has become enforceable. The lender can possess and sell that collateral if the borrower defaults should that lender have the highest priority on the collateral. The question we left off with last week was how to properly establish that highest priority, primarily…
    Continue Reading How to Protect a Trademark as Collateral on a Loan (Part 2)

    Working for a firm that does a high volume of work with intellectual property allows for deeper dives into IP-related issues. One example involves situations where a lender has loaned money to a person with collateral for that loan being an item of intellectual property, such as an interest in a trademark. Whoa! Can a trademark (think something like a logo) be used as collateral against a loan? According to the Uniform Commercial Code, the set of laws which…
    Continue Reading How to Protect a Trademark as Collateral on a Loan (Part 1)

    Logos can be an effective tool. Like word marks, logos can be used to help consumers draw a connection between goods/services and the source of those goods/services. With especially prominent logos, that connection can even be drawn without words (think of a particular swoosh for shoes or golden arches for burgers). With that potential in mind, clients will often come to us with requests to register logo marks. When those requests come in, we typically ask at least two…
    Continue Reading When to Hold On, and When to Logo