Zak Parker
Taglines are trademarks and can give rise to infringement lawsuits. Chick-Fil-A went after an individual who used the tagline EAT MORE KALE, saying it infringed their tagline EAT MORE CHIK’N. And back when all they cared about was books, Amazon got sued by Barnes & Noble for using EARTH’S BIGGEST BOOKSTORE, while B&N went by WORLD’S BIGGEST BOOKSELLER.
Make sure you don’t end up in a similar position. Work with an attorney to conduct a trademark availability search before launching your tagline. Once you determine that your tagline is available for use, work with an attorney to file an application to register your tagline as a trademark. And keep your rights in this asset by monitoring your tagline for infringing uses and taking steps to stop them.
Contributors: Laura Winston from Kim Winston LLP
