Rule of Law

During the interview I asked Alexandra all these questions pertaining to my curiosity in my field of fashion. During our interview we discussed primarily copyrights, patent laws, and infringement. When it comes to my work, I want it to be legally protected. "Infringement of a copyright can be treated as a federal crime under the Copyright Act if it is done intentionally and with full knowledge that an infringement is occurring." (Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 243) Although there are laws to cover me while I have a copyright on my work, there are some laws that have gray areas. Although ultimately it is infringement to use copyrighted works without permission, there are exceptions to this law, which was shocking news to me. “As a general rule, and infringement will be deemed deliberate if it begins after the mark in question has been federally registered, because the infringer is deemed to have notice of the existing mark”(Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 412) Her logic pertaining to my questions was more that they were business decisions that needed legal backing rather than strict legal issues. It was exciting and very interesting to learn about the limitations I have and what I can do if someone takes one of my patented designs. “Profits reaped by an infringer as a result of a copyright infringement are one possible element of monetary damages a court may require the infringer to pay the copyright owner. Defendants profits will only be awarded where these profits exceed the amount of profits lost by the copyright owner as a result of the infringement”(Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 318)