Laura T. Geyer

Partner
Photo of Laura T. Geyer
Offices Washington
Phone 202.467.8940
Fax 202.533.9011
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Laura is a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease, LLP, and a member of the intellectual property, media, technology and entertainment group.  She counsels clients on a variety of aspects of intellectual property law including trademark, copyright, and internet law issues; IP issues related to social media and licensing and due diligence for IP transactions and disputes.

During her 23-year career in IP law, Laura has worked on a broad variety of issues including: trademark and branding strategy, and prosecution from clearance to registration; trademark infringement and conflict resolution (from demand letter to inter partes practice before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board); as well as international trademark disputes . In addition, she has counseled clients on copyright issues, and internet and domain disputes, and has filed and managed domain disputes in both national and international forums.  Laura also has significant experience conducting due diligence and has managed IP due diligence review as part of a multidisciplinary team responsible for counseling clients on international and national high-stakes corporate transactions. She is also a member of the Vorys eControl team.

Prior to joining Vorys, Laura was an attorney at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld and at Jones Day. She also wrote for the Bloomberg Corporation's then-new B-LAW legal reference service.

Laura received her J.D. cum laude from the Washington College of Law at American University, where she was the special projects editor of the American University Law Review.  She received her B.A. from Oberlin College.

Professional and Community Activities

News

Events

Insights

  • 2/1/2022
    Patent and Trademark Office Updates You Need to Know
    See how patent and trademark offices around the world are handling deadlines and other issues amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • 12/1/2021
    Patent and Trademark Office Updates You Need to Know
    See how patent and trademark offices around the world are handling deadlines and other issues amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • 11/23/2021
    New Year, New USPTO: Petitions for Challenging Unused Marks Under TMA Accepted Starting December 27, 2021
    On Wednesday, November 17, 2021, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office published its final rule for new procedures allowing third parties to challenge unused trademark registrations. The rule enacts changes in trademark law embodied in the Trademark Modernization Act (TMA) that went into force in December, 2020.
  • 11/10/2021
    Patent and Trademark Office Updates You Need to Know
    See how patent and trademark offices around the world are handling deadlines and other issues amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • 9/7/2021
    Patent and Trademark Office Updates You Need to Know
    See how patent and trademark offices around the world are handling deadlines and other issues amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • 8/11/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    See how patent and trademark offices around the world are handling deadlines and other issues amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • 7/6/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world. 
  • 6/1/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 5/27/2021
    Prove It or Lose It: TMA Provides New Tools to Sweep Away Deadwood Marks, Settles Circuit Split over Injunctive Relief Burden of Proof
    The Trademark Modernization Act (2020) (TMA) was signed into law on December 27, 2020; most of its provisions go into effect December 27, 2021. 
  • 5/24/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    See how patent and trademark offices around the world are handling deadlines and other issues amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • 5/4/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    See how patent and trademark offices around the world are handling deadlines and other issues amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • 4/12/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world. 
  • 3/11/2021
    The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 Expected to Become Law
    On Wednesday, March 10th, the House passed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the third major federal COVID-19 relief act following the CARES Act and the December 2020 Consolidated Appropriations Act. President Biden is expected to sign it into law Friday.
  • 3/2/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 2/1/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world. 
  • 1/25/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world. 
  • 1/18/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world. 
  • 1/11/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  The following are a few recent updates.
  • 1/5/2021
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world. 
  • 12/28/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 12/27/2020
    President Signs $900 Billion Economic Aid Package
    Late on December 27, the President signed a $900 billion relief package that will provide aid to individuals and businesses still struggling with the economic impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Both the House and the Senate passed the proposal last week.
  • 12/21/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 12/14/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 12/8/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 11/30/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 11/23/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 11/16/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 11/9/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 11/2/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 10/26/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 10/20/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 10/12/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 10/5/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 9/28/2020
    Intellectual Property Alert: Celebrities v. Paparazzo Copyright in Photographs of Themselves
    It is settled law that copyright in a photograph, as with any original work of authorship, belongs to the author: the photographer.
  • 9/21/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 9/14/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 9/8/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 8/31/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 8/24/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 8/17/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 8/11/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 8/4/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
  • 7/21/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 7/13/2020
    Patent Office Updates You Need to Know
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 7/7/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 7/1/2020
    Intellectual Property Alert: Supreme Court Decision Sheds Light on Examination of .COM Trademark Applications
    On June 30, 2020 the United States Supreme Court ruled in Patent and Trademark Office v. Booking.com B.V. that the travel website company Booking.com could register a trademark in its name BOOKING.COM. 
  • 6/29/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 6/22/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 6/16/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 6/9/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 6/2/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 5/28/2020
    USPTO to Grant Further Relief for Certain Patent-Related Fees and Deadlines
    The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced on an official notice that it will grant further relief for certain patent-related fees and deadlines, on May 27, 2020.
  • 5/26/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
  • 5/18/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world. 
  • 5/11/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  
  • 5/5/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
  • 4/29/2020
    COVID-19 Patent & Trademark Office Updates
    We’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.  The following are a few recent updates.
  • 4/28/2020
    Intellectual Property Alert: The Supreme Court Expands the Government Edicts Doctrine in its Ruling that Annotations in Official State Codes Are Not Copyrightable by the Government
    The United States Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, ruled that Georgia could not copyright annotations to its official state law code.
  • 4/27/2020
    Intellectual Property Alert: Supreme Court Rules Willfulness Not Required to Obtain Profits in Trademark Suits; Increases Risk to Defendants, Potential Recovery to Plaintiffs in Trademark Litigation
    On April 23, 2020, the Court ruled that, while it was an important factor for courts to weigh, willfulness could not be an "inflexible precondition" to recovery in a case of infringement of a federal trademark.
  • 4/20/2020
    COVID-19 Patent Office Updates
    In these unforeseen and unique circumstances surrounding the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, we want to keep our clients abreast of how patent and trademark offices around the world are handling deadlines and other issues.
  • 4/8/2020
    Update: Changes to IP Operations Worldwide
    As part of our dedication to helping our clients stay up-to-date on the ever-changing landscape as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve compiled the following highlights of changes to patent, trademark, and copyright operations around the world.
  • 4/1/2020
    Patent and Trademark Office Extends Filing and Payment Deadlines for COVID-Related Causes
    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced on March 31, 2020 that certain patent and trademark filing and payment deadlines have been extended in response to delays caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.
  • 3/30/2020
    COVID-19 Patent and Trademark Filing Impacts
    In these unforeseen and unique circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, we want to keep our clients abreast of how patent and trademark offices around the world are handling deadlines and other issues.
  • 8/30/2018
    Vanilla With Cherry Overtones: Pursuing A Nontraditional Trademark
    Laura Geyer, a partner in the Vorys Washington, D.C. office, authored an article for Westlaw’s Intellectual Property Journal.
  • 7/31/2018
    Client Alert: Are You Prepared To Be Audited By The Trademark Office?
    Currently, to maintain or renew a United States trademark registration, the registrant must file a Declaration of Use stating the mark is in use in commerce in connection with each listed good or service in the registration.
  • 3/2/2018
    Client Alert: It’s That Maddening Time of Year Again: March
    Now that March is here we want to take a moment to remind you that MARCH MADNESS is a registered trademark of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
  • 3/13/2017
    Client Alert: Read This If You Operate a Website with User-Generated Content: Mandatory Registration of a Designated Agent
    Picture this: your company operates a website which allows users to post material such as music, drawings, videos or photographs. One day your company receives a letter alleging copyright infringement and demanding a large sum of money from your company because one of those user-generated posts included copyright-protected materials without the owner’s authorization.
  • 2/3/2017
    Client Alert: More Changes are Coming to Trademark Practice: Specimens and Declarations
    More changes are going into effect at the Trademark Office that may increase the vulnerability of trademark registrations both during prosecution and after registration.
  • 1/5/2017
    Client Alert: Changes are Coming to Trademark Practice: New Fees and Rules
    After ten years with no change, on January 14, 2017, new filing fees in the Trademark Office and Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (Board) and revised rules of procedure before the Board for both new and pending cases will go into effect.
  • 8/22/2016
    Client Alert: The Complexity of Trademarks in the Marijuana Business
    With Ohio set to become the 25th state to legalize marijuana for medical use, there are inevitably many questions about how to legally operate marijuana-related businesses in those states.
  • 7/6/2016
    Client Alert: Don't Panic! Protecting your UK Trademark Coverage in the Wake of the 'Brexit'
    In the wake of the surprise outcome of the United Kingdom referendum on whether to leave the European Union (aka, the Brexit), many clients have asked what they should do to ensure continued trademark protection in the UK for their existing European Union (EU) registrations and future applications.
  • 6/14/2016
    Client Alert: Putting the Government to Work for Your Business
    U.S. Customs and Border Control (CBC) is a powerful ally in the battle to prevent counterfeits from reaching the U.S. market. In 2015 an estimated 11 million maritime containers arrived on U.S. shores carrying imported products from all over the world.
  • 10/13/2015
    Client Alert: Beware of Trademark Scams - More than your Money is at Stake
    Your company spends vast resources developing and protecting its brand. A brand or trademark is shorthand communication for your company’s values and the quality of your products or services. Obtaining a trademark registration from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) provides the fullest protection under the law.
  • 8/18/2014
    Client Alert: Five Considerations When Selecting a New Brand
    Selecting a name or brand for a new product or service involves multiple considerations, some of which are not obvious at first and can haunt the company later. Marketing teams struggle with choosing a name that balances the right message and image to attract the target consumers while informing those consumers of the benefits and functions of the new product or service. During this process it is easy to forget that brands are valuable assets and protectable property under trademark law. Trademarks are the public face of a product or company and hold the reputation and goodwill of the company, typically for many years and even generations. Thus, it is important to select the strongest trademarks to lay a strong foundation for a long-term asset. Following are five considerations, beyond the marketing concerns, to assist in selecting a strong new brand.