Imagine my surprise this morning, after having blogged just yesterday about rote airline instructions concerning the danger of electronic devices in Lacking Credibility, to see the cover story for USA Today read: "Many Fliers Refuse to Turn Off Electronic Gadgets." Incidentally, not this Gadget, but that’s another story altogether. Recall that yesterday, in writing about the… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: Brand Message
When a Brand’s Visual Identity Has Serious Trademark Implications
By Steve Baird on Posted in Branding, Sight, TrademarksThe strategic use of color can make all the difference in the world — particularly the trademark world – when creating the visual identity for a brand, as color can be a very helpful legal tool in communicating the brand’s underlying meaning. And the meaning of a brand and its trademark, or a portion of its trademark, can have many legal… Continue Reading
Brands That Cut Corners, Literally . . .
By Steve Baird on Posted in Advertising, Branding, Famous Marks, Food, Marketing, Non-Traditional Trademarks, TrademarksWendy’s is a brand that claims to not cut corners: "For Wendy’s, square isn’t so much a shape as a promise to not cut corners." As a trademark type, the focus on the square shape and surrounding symbolism leaves me wondering whether Wendy’s is cleverly laying the groundwork for claiming non-traditional trademark rights in the… Continue Reading
lower case branding & visual identity
By Steve Baird on Posted in BrandingJust so you know, it about pushed me over the edge to have a blog post title with no capitalization. Not even one letter. In other words, all minuscules, no majuscules. It doesn’t seem right – to me anyway, as a trademark type. Just like the first letter in the first word of a sentence must be a… Continue Reading
It’s All About the Advertising
By Laura Gutierrez on Posted in Advertising, Marketing, TelevisionA week or two after the Super Bowl, I’m not the only one still talking about it (our guest blogger David Mitchel discussed it yesterday). This year’s commercials did not wow me like I expected (sorry, cute Darth Vader kid). What surprised me was the lack of brand message. Sure, Doritos has edgy ads, and… Continue Reading
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Duets Blog Authors

Steve Baird
Just so you know, I'm all about brands and the law, both professionally and personally. I regularly annoy family and friends in retail stores by focusing on product labels—not to buy the product, but to read the fine print and ask, "Who owns these brands" and "Did they really register those marks?" More...
Dan Kelly
You can call me a “non-traditional” attorney, which is a polite way of saying that I did not attend law school straight out of college. I spent five of my first six years after college as a junior high school teacher. The other year I worked as an engineer for a large corporation. More...
Sharon Armstrong
Voted most likely to become an actress while in pre-school, I don’t think I surprised anyone by becoming a lawyer, the steadiest professional gig open to those with a flair for the dramatic. More...
Brent Lorentz
Although I wish I could say my path to the law was the result of a lifelong dream or calling, it was more the result mere curiosity and an affinity for leather-bound books. More...
Catlan McCurdy
Having long been told by my parents that I could do or be anything I wanted, I chose at the age of 10 to become an attorney, as it was the career that would most likely lead me to my goal of becoming the first woman POTUS.More...
Tiffany Blofield
Although my initial career path was to be one of the Supremes (not the musically talented ones with platform shoes and sequins, but rather, the nine wearing sensible shoes and pressed black robes in DC), I will likely stay in Minnesota as I have never lived anywhere else. More...
Brad Walz
My law career started on the ice…as a defensive hockey player (we’re not talking professionally…and if I were, I probably wouldn’t have gotten into law). More...
Susan Perera
Born into the world with an aptitude for science and an affinity for art I found my career path quickly chosen for me. More...
Derek Allen
In hindsight, writing about creativity and the law may have always been in the cards for me. I began training for a career in litigation at an early age by finding ways to disagree with pretty much anyone about pretty much anything. In my longest-running “case,” I argued with my middle school math teacher, Mrs. Jabs, for the better part of four years over whether, even if I got the right answer, I had to show my work to get full credit. More...
Laura Gutierrez
An attorney I am not. Though told to become one, I don't possess those qualities needed to be an effective one (I lack confrontation skills, and although I can write a great argumentative essay, I can’t argue outside a sheet of paper). More...
Recent Updates
- Forming positive connections
- Authentic Versus Inauthentic Branding
- Using Old Starsky and Hutch to Sell New Furniture?
- Rapala: Happy Fishing on Mother’s Day
- Specific Non-Commitment
- Wait, You Mean I Can’t Fast-Forward Through Product Placements?
- Hermès Wins In Suit Against Counterfeit Group
- I See (Unintended) Branding Irony (Again)
- Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time…
- I’ve Got a Beef with Kobe (Beef).
- Magic Bracelets, Marvel Avengers Edition
- Branding the Derby
- Record Labels Losing Sight of the Purpose Behind Copyright Termination Rights
- Business Plans, Now More Than Ever: Part II
- Louboutin: Still Waiting on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals
- Andrew Luck Takes An Early Hit
- Generational Naming: A Marketer’s Perspective
- Stealing Trademarks Can Land You in Jail
- Business Plans, Now More Than Ever: Part I
- Trademark Enforcement Cease and Desist Letters: A Strategic Framework for Response
- Generational Naming 8.0
- Indemnification for the Marketing Firm
- Pinterest, Thy Name is Fair Use
- Who Stole My [Pinned] Art?
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