# Copyrighting t-shirt design



## Vinny46 (Mar 15, 2013)

_How easy is it to Copyright my t-shirt design? Where on line would I have to go? (USPTO)? Could I do this myself? Or do I need a lawyer?_


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## FreelanceCisco (Oct 6, 2012)

Try LegalZoom.com. That's what I use. 


Sent from the moon!


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## amdivoff (Jun 6, 2012)

How much for the copyright?


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## kimura-mma (Jul 26, 2008)

Vinny46 said:


> How easy is it to Copyright my t-shirt design?


Very easy. If your design is completed, it is automatically copyrighted. You don't have to do anything at all to claim copyright ownership of your design.



Vinny46 said:


> Where on line would I have to go? (USPTO)? Could I do this myself? Or do I need a lawyer?


If you want official proof of copyright ownership, you should register your design at U.S. Copyright Office.

Yes, you can do it yourself. No need for an attorney.


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## kimura-mma (Jul 26, 2008)

amdivoff said:


> How much for the copyright?


The application fee is $35 to register at U.S. Copyright Office.


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## GordonM (May 21, 2012)

To echo what Tim says, in the US copyrighting is free. Since the 70s copyright is automatically conferred upon creation.

But I suspect you're talking about copyright registration, which gives you the ability to seek statutory damages. The filing fee is $35, and as Tim notes, it can be done online. I'd personally wait to do a bunch together. As long as all the designs are new, either published or will be published within a few months time, you can save some money and do them altogether. Just put them in a PDF "book." Plenty of sites out there explain how to do this.

Mind you, the ability to seek statutory damages goes only as far as your willingness to spent tens of thousands in federal court to seek relief.

The above is not legal advice.


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## davespider (Jun 16, 2013)

GordonM said:


> To echo what Tim says, in the US copyrighting is free. Since the 70s copyright is automatically conferred upon creation.
> 
> But I suspect you're talking about copyright registration, which gives you the ability to seek statutory damages. The filing fee is $35, and as Tim notes, it can be done online. I'd personally wait to do a bunch together. As long as all the designs are new, either published or will be published within a few months time, you can save some money and do them altogether. Just put them in a PDF "book." Plenty of sites out there explain how to do this.
> 
> ...


When you say one needs tens of thousands to recover damages on an infringment case do you have some experience about that? 

I don't. But say you have an original T shirt design and somebody does a blatant rip off of the design, starts making their own shirts using your design and sell a lot of them over several months. 
So is it impossible, that using a lawyer pro bono you would have no chance to win damages? 
And if it's not can you at least get the infringer to stop using your design?


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## GordonM (May 21, 2012)

Any kind of suit in federal court, the court you can take a copyright case to, costs thousands just to begin. You'd be foolish to try to represent yourself in front of a federal judge, and the average IP attorney bills out at around $400 an hour, plus expenses. Bigger city lawyers can go as high at $650+. The cost for writing the initial brief would conservatively be $3-5,000.

I don't know of many copyright attorneys that work pro bono unless it's for a charitable cause, and this is not the kind of case that they'll take on contingency.

You can never truly stop the infringement. You can win a suit where you are awarded damages, but there's no guarantee A) they'll pay or B) they'll stop the infringement. Your best hope is that you file and they never answer. You win a summary judgement without every having to pay for discovery, expert witnesses, etc. You can then pursue collection.

Most copyright claims go as far as a cease and desist letter. That's usually enough to get most people to stop the infringement, if it's clearly so. Most attorneys will do a boilerplate C&D for under $250, or included in services if on retainer.

The above is not legal advice.


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## davespider (Jun 16, 2013)

GordonM said:


> You can never truly stop the infringement. You can win a suit where you are awarded damages, but there's no guarantee A) they'll pay or B) they'll stop the infringement. Your best hope is that you file and they never answer. You win a summary judgement without every having to pay for discovery, expert witnesses, etc. You can then pursue collection.
> 
> 
> 
> The above is not legal advice.


Thanks for the excellent info.

I'm reading your A) and B) 

If I'm understanding you right you file a lawsuit with no lawyer and if they don't answer in a certain period of time you get an automatic win? -don't know much about law. please bear with me. Then you say you can pursue collection. Does pursuing collection cost you money? Do you need a lawyer for that?

thanks


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## GordonM (May 21, 2012)

It's very rare to represent yourself in *federal* court if you cannot show a fairly substantial understanding of the law. Federal court isn't like small claims or even county courts. IP law is very specialized, and the average lawyer won't handle those cases. That should tell you something about the process of doing it yourself.

Yes, pursuing collection costs you money: Just about everything costs you money. It costs just to file the case.

Bear in mind I cannot give you legal advice. If you need help along these lines, it's best to seek the advice of a qualified attorney licensed in your state. You can do a lot of research on the Web, but the answers will always be generic.


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## INKFREAK (Jul 24, 2008)

Gordon is spot on, a copyright is only as good as the money you have to enforce it. I have a good friend that does this type of work and the billing fee's are out of this world. A C&D goes a long way with people that aren't too sharp, but in the long run, it's pretty easy to rip off some ones work.
I always like to believe that the truly creative are always a couple of steps ahead of the non-creative( no talent) types, who will always be copying and never the front runner of the newest trends.


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## tshirtca (Nov 1, 2006)

I've always suggested to my customers that its a wast of time and money to copyright a t-shirt design. I've had my hand in producing some pretty amazing designs for my customers and none of them have been successful.. I would recommend you see if your design actually sells first, then maybe consider copyrighting it.


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## strike3sports (Jun 24, 2013)

I agree, make sure you have a good selling design before registering for a copyright. If it is selling good you will also have proof and records of how long you have been selling the design just in case someone tried to rip it off.


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