Talking Athlete Trademarks with Attorney Justin Clark

2023-08-20

In this episode, we’re talking about athlete branding and specificlaly athlete trademarks. There are some really important things that athletes should do to protect their rights as an athlete for their name, image and likeness. Today’s guest is Justin Clark, Managing Attorney at Clark Law Firm, PLLC. Justin has more than a decade of experience in trademark law. He assists businesses in identifying opportunities for brand protection and enforcement to build significant value for the business. His focus includes trademark ide...

Today’s guest is Justin Clark, Managing Attorney at Clark Law Firm, PLLC. Justin has more than a decade of experience in trademark law. He assists businesses in identifying opportunities for brand protection and enforcement to build significant value for the business. His focus includes trademark identification, registration, development, and value-enhancement. From the beginning stages of brand selection through the roll-out of sophisticated licensing programs, he can guide a business through every step of the trademark process.

Justin is an amateur athlete that loves snowboarding, ice hockey, and weightlifting. He played ice hockey in high school and college, but these days he is more of a weekend warrior. When he is not in the office, you can find him in his home gym finding the perfect compound exercises and trying not to deflate a slam ball by throwing it too hard.

In this episode:

How Justin got into the business as a trademark attorney.

The importance of law school and how he grew his experience and portfolio.

Why Justin loves owning his own firm.

Why athletes are using trademarks to protect their athlete brand.

How sports trademarks started in the 1970s.

Trademarking a touchdown celebration.

Merchandise your licensable value.

How to get a trademark and who owns it.

Can your gym or trainer use your name, image and likeness to market their memberships?

Why putting your name on goods and services can monetize your brand and protect your name, image and likeness.

The importance of the first amendment related to name, image and likeness.