How Entrepreneurs Can Protect Their Intellectual Property

Episode 153

Do you have a trademark or copyright for your business? Is it easier to ignore the process because it seems overwhelming? If you are ready to learn more about protecting your business from a professional who can help, you’re in luck!

Richard Gearhart is the founder of Gearhart Law and hosts a weekly radio show for entrepreneurs called “Passage to Profit.” 

He has built a firm over the last 30 years with an international presence that helps entrepreneurs from around the world with their patent, trademark, and copyright needs—Richard’s passion for entrepreneurship and startups and his belief that entrepreneurship grows the economy and creates jobs.

Here are three reasons why you should listen to the complete episode:

1. 1. You will learn when to consult with an intellectual property professional about your brand and business.
   2. Richard digs deeper in his Passage To Profit show. 
   3. Learn the difference between trademarks and copyright.
      
      

Episode Highlights

Who is Richard Gearhart

• • He is the founder of Gearhart Law. 
  • He hosts a weekly radio show for entrepreneurs called Passage To Profit. 
  • He’s built a law firm over the last 30 years with an international presence that helps entrepreneurs worldwide with their patent, trademark, and copyright needs.
  • Richard believes that entrepreneurship grows the economy and creates jobs.

Richard’s background

• • Richard went to college and graduated with a chemistry degree.
  • He decided he wanted to go to law school but wasn’t interested in law. He was interested in the training because he knew it was a rigorous program.
  • After he graduated from law school, he took a break for a couple of years and completed a master’s degree at the University of Geneva in Switzerland.
  • Richard worked for an international law firm called John Stay, which is one of the biggest multinational law firms.

The difference between Trademark and Copyright

• • Patents protect technology and inventions.
  • Trademarks protect a brand by identifying the source of the goods.
  • Copyrights protect original works of expression.

When thinking about a Trademark

• • You should consult with an intellectual property professional while going through your branding.
  • You want to make sure the name you want isn’t already taken by somebody else.
  • You can go to the trademark office database and search there, but you’re taking a risk and might be getting into trouble.

Beginning his Entrepreneurial Journey

• • The biggest thing Richard was concerned about was attracting clients.
  • He compensated for that by charging super low rates. 
  • He, fortunately, had a lot of good training and was always confident that he knew what he was talking about.
  • Very few law firms had websites, and many people told him he would never get clients or leads on the internet. 

Richard’s firm now

• • He has about 20 contributors and eight lawyers.
  • They were Inc. 5000 Award-winning recipients for two years in a row.
  • In 2022, they will probably grow by 8% to 10% in total revenue. 

How Richard thought the Entrepreneur Life would be 

• • He thought it would be an easy journey.
  • He learned it’s more challenging than a top corporate job because he has to manage, do the leadership piece, the business development piece, make sure the legal piece is running right, the IT piece, the financial piece, and the HR piece. 

What Richard loves and dislikes the most about entrepreneurship

• • The part he loves the most is the challenge since he is a problem solver. 
  • For him, growth is only about playing the game better and more effectively.
  • Even though he is at the point now where he can take weekends off, he’s often strategizing or thinking about the business.

Digging into Richard’s Passage To Profit show

• • Part of the Passage To Profit experience is exposing people to entrepreneurship, thinking about maybe taking the leap, and giving them the confidence that it is possible.
  • Passage to Profit has a wide variety of guests on their show, which airs on the IHeart app, and is also available on radio stations.
  • Thirty radio stations in the US are playing pre-recorded broadcasts to their listeners.
  • It provides a rich education and has some entertainment value, too.

What Richard would like to be remembered for

• • Richard would like to be known as a good husband and father and as somebody who tried to help people start their businesses.
    
    

3 Powerful Quotes from this Episode

21:10 – “A lot of people told me, ‘you’ll never get anything on the internet; it’s all about relationships, buddy.'”

24:01 – “I have to wear many hats, and it’s taken me longer than I would have wished to acquire those skills. I thought managing people would be a piece of cake, but it’s not.”

30:15–” What you learn is that everybody does it differently. There is no one right way, there are some basic principles you can follow, but some people are successful by breaking the principles.”

About Richard Gearhart

Richard is the founder of Gearhart Law and hosts a weekly radio show for entrepreneurs called “Passage to Profit.” He has built a firm with an international presence that helps entrepreneurs worldwide with their patent, trademark, and copyright needs. Richard commands a breadth of experience that comes from nearly 30 years of practice in the writing and prosecuting of hundreds of patents and in all aspects of Intellectual Property law.

Gearhart Law emerged from Richard’s passion for entrepreneurship and startups and his belief that entrepreneurship grows the economy and creates jobs. 

Richard graduated from Knox College with a BA in Chemistry. He received his J.D. from Case Western Reserve University and subsequently obtained a DES in International Law from the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva, Switzerland. He is registered to practice at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and admitted to practice in the states of New Jersey, Michigan, and Massachusetts.News.

Connect with Richard Gearhart

Website

LinkedIn

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Thanks for listening,

Darrell