Assignee: The person or entity to which rights have been transferred through an assignment.
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Artistic Works: Copyrightable works that includes drawings, paintings, literary works, and more.
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Architectural Work: For copyright applications, an architectural work is an artistic creation that represents the design of a building or structure.
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Arbitrary Marks: Trademarks that consist of words or images that do not inherently describe the product or service for which they function as the source identifier. Arbitrary marks are considered inherently distinctive, which entitles them to a higher degree of protection.
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Applicant: The person or entity that files for a patent, copyright, or trademark registration.
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Anti-Trafficking in Trademarks: Legal strategies and tactics to prevent infringement, piracy, and counterfeiting of trademarks.
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Anti-Counterfeiting & Trademark Piracy: Anti-Counterfeiting & Trademark Piracy are steps taken to stop counterfeiting and piracy of trademarks, which can include IP enforcement programs. For more information, please see our Anti-Counterfeiting & Trademark Piracy page.
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Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act: The Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act (ACPA), 15 USC § 1125(D) “was intended to prevent ‘cybersquatting,’ an expression that has come to mean the bad faith, abusive registration and use of the distinctive trademarks of others as Internet domain names, with the intent to profit from the goodwill associated with those trademarks.”
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Anticipation: Under 35 U.S.C. § 102(a), a concept in patent law where an invention is not considered novel because it has been previously disclosed in a single prior art reference. “Anticipation” can be used to reject a pending patent application or if a patent issued, invalidate patent claims.
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Anonymous Work: For copyrights, a work for which the author is not identified as a natural person.
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Annuity Fees: Governmental fees that patent applicants and holders must pay to maintain their patent rights each year. Annuities are typically charged by patent offices foreign to the United States.
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Amendments to Patent Applications: Any modifications, including additions, made to an application during a patent process.
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Amendment to Allege Use: A sworn document filed with the USPTO to declare use of a trademark in commerce in connection with claimed goods/services after filing an intent-to-use (ITU) application.
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Amazon’s Utility Patent Neutral Evaluation Procedure: An expedited legal proceeding managed by Amazon to resolve disputes over utility patents between sellers.
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Amazon Brand Registry Program: A program intended to help brand owners protect their intellectual property (IP) and police use of brands on Amazon to protect consumers.
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Allegation of Use: A statement filed by a trademark applicant at the UPSTO asserting the use of a trademark in commerce in connection with claimed goods/services.
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AIPLA: American Intellectual Property Law Association.
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AIPA: American Inventors Protection Act, an amendment to the U.S. Patent Act, legislation aimed at protecting the rights of inventors.
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Agreement: A contract.
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Agent: An individual who is authorized to represent an another, called a “principal.” For patents, this is a person registered to practice before the office and authorized to represent an applicant for a patent. An “agent” is not a licensed attorney, but is authorized to act for or on behalf of the applicant.
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