Indie Law, A Trademark Law Firm

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Indie Law, A Trademark Law Firm Trademarks are our jam. We help cool entrepreneurs like you keep your brand protected.

Simply put, we help entrepreneurs through the trademark application process. Indie Law serves businesses and entrepreneurs all over the world to protect their trademarks.

We hear this one all the time. "My business name protects my brand, right?"Not exactly. Having a business name, even one...
10/01/2026

We hear this one all the time. "My business name protects my brand, right?"

Not exactly. Having a business name, even one you've used for years, doesn't automatically give you rights to stop someone else from using something close to it. It just means that's what you're calling your business.

The thing that actually protects your name is a trademark, and that's a completely separate process most business owners never get walked through until something goes wrong.

Got a question that's been living rent free in your head? Drop it below, yours might be the one we answer next.

This is usually the face I make when someone tells me they're just going to file their trademark themselves.I get why pe...
09/29/2026

This is usually the face I make when someone tells me they're just going to file their trademark themselves.

I get why people think that. On paper, it looks like filling out a form.

Here's the thing though, most of the value in what we do doesn't happen on the form itself. It happens in locking in your rights early, building an application that's actually built to succeed instead of hoping for the best, and having someone in your corner the whole way through instead of finding out something went wrong six months later.

That's basically our whole approach in a nutshell, we just call it the RAD Method internally.

If protecting your name has been sitting on your list because the process feels like a headache, this is exactly why we built it this way.

Send us a message and let's get it handled.

Everyone has an idea. Not everyone builds it.It's easy to sit on a good one forever, tweaking it in your head, waiting f...
09/26/2026

Everyone has an idea. Not everyone builds it.

It's easy to sit on a good one forever, tweaking it in your head, waiting for a perfect moment that never actually shows up. The founders who make it aren't the ones with the best idea. They're the ones who stopped waiting and started building, even before it felt ready.

If you've been sitting on something for a while now, this is your sign. Start today, even messy, even small.

What's the business idea you've been sitting on? Tell us. We'd love to hear it.

If you have a podcast, a book, or a keynote, the name is doing more work than people usually realize.People search for i...
09/23/2026

If you have a podcast, a book, or a keynote, the name is doing more work than people usually realize.

People search for it by name. They recommend it to a friend by name. They remember you by that name, not necessarily your actual legal business name.

That means your title is functioning like a brand, whether or not it's actually protected as one. If someone else launches something close enough to it, the confusion falls on you, not them.

Swipe through, and if your name already has an audience built around it, send us a DM so we can check whether it's actually protected.

Quick logo check. Are you using ™ or ®?They look like tiny details, but they don't mean the same thing. And using the wr...
09/19/2026

Quick logo check. Are you using ™ or ®?

They look like tiny details, but they don't mean the same thing. And using the wrong one can create a problem you probably don't want.

™ means you're claiming a name, logo, or phrase as your trademark. You don't need to have a federal registration to use it.

® is different. It means the trademark has actually been registered with the USPTO. You can't use it just because you've filed an application or plan to register later. The registration needs to be official.

So if you're still waiting on your trademark registration, don't put ® on your logo yet.

And if you're wondering whether you should be using ™, ®, or even SM for your brand, it's worth checking before you start putting that symbol everywhere.

Swipe through for the quick breakdown. And if you're not sure which one belongs on your logo, send us a DM.

Running a trademark firm isn't a one person job, even when there's one name most people associate with it.Every applicat...
09/17/2026

Running a trademark firm isn't a one person job, even when there's one name most people associate with it.

Every application that comes through Indie Law passes through more hands than clients usually realize. Someone catches a detail in how a client described their business. Someone else checks how that detail interacts with what's already out there. Someone flags a question before it ever needs to be asked.

That's the actual work behind protecting a name. Not one attorney working alone in an office, but a team constantly comparing notes on what a specific client actually needs.

If you've ever wondered who's really looking at your application behind the scenes, it's more people paying more attention than you'd probably guess.

Curious what actually happens after you hit submit on a trademark application? Drop your question below.

The product. The website. The reputation people recognize you by. All the visible parts of what you've built took real w...
09/14/2026

The product. The website. The reputation people recognize you by. All the visible parts of what you've built took real work to get right.

Your name deserves that same care. It just happens somewhere a little less visible.

Outkast just settled a trademark dispute over the name ATLiens. And there's a bigger lesson here for anyone choosing a b...
09/11/2026

Outkast just settled a trademark dispute over the name ATLiens. And there's a bigger lesson here for anyone choosing a business name.

Back in 1996, Outkast released their album ATLiens. Years later, an Atlanta-based EDM duo began using the same name. The duo registered ATLiens as a federal trademark in 2020, and Outkast's company sued in 2024.

The case settled this February. The terms were kept private.

But here's the part business owners should really pay attention to. A federal trademark registration doesn't automatically mean nobody else can have rights in the name.

Trademark rights can also come from actual use. If someone was already using a name in commerce before a later registration, that earlier use can matter.

That's why a trademark search shouldn't stop at asking whether a name is available to register. You also want to know who is already using it, what they're using it for, and how long they've been using it.

A name that looks available in the trademark database might not tell you the whole story.

Curious how "first use" can affect trademark rights? Drop your question below.

A client called me once while she was on vacation, completely panicked. She'd just gotten a cease and desist letter over...
09/10/2026

A client called me once while she was on vacation, completely panicked. She'd just gotten a cease and desist letter over her brand name and was already mentally preparing for a full rebrand.

We got on a call together and read through the letter line by line. Turned out the claims against her didn't actually hold up. She kept her name, kept her brand, and got back to her vacation.

That call is basically why I do this work.

I didn't get into trademark law because I love a fight. I'm the peacemaker in a family of seven kids, not the arguer. I got into this because founders don't need someone who escalates things, they need someone who can look at a scary letter, or a scary situation, and calmly tell them what's actually true.

Most days, that's the whole job. Not courtroom drama, just making sure someone who built something real doesn't lose it over confusion or fear or not knowing who to call.

If you've got a letter, a question, or just a nagging feeling you should check on your name, that's what we're here for. Drop a comment or send a message, happy to just talk it through.

Address

3033 North Clark Street
Chicago, IL
60657

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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