Common Legal Pitfalls in the Logo Design Process

As a business owner, undoubtedly one of the first things you’ll want to do is find someone to design a logo for your business. Picking the colors, choosing font, etc. can be very exciting! However, there are some legal pitfalls that many business owners fall into when engaging a designer in this process. As long as you’re aware of the below, you’ll be able to have a logo that you own and does not infringe on any other person or entity’s rights. 

Online Design Software
I’m a huge fan of online design tools (like Canva.com). They offer an accessible and user friendly approach to designing business marketing materials. For logo creation in particular, it can be a very useful tool for small businesses. However, there is a very important issue to note when using a site like this - not all logos created on the site can be registered as a Trademark. Let me explain. If you use basic elements from the design site (e.g., lines, shapes, and fonts) to create an original logo then you will likely be able to register it. That’s because those elements will be unique and original to you. BUT, if you use any stock graphics, illustrations, photos or other content from such a site to create your logo, those are only licensed to you on a non-exclusive basis. Meaning anyone can use the exact same content and that becomes a big problem from a Trademark registration perspective. Canva says so themselves here and here. 

So if you or your branding person are going to use an online design site, always make sure the logo is completely original and is not created using stock content. 

Logo IP Rights & Designers
Under Copyright law, whoever creates an artistic or literary work is automatically the Copyright owner of that work. For example, whoever painted the painting, the person that clicks the camera for the image, or the person who designs a logo - all automatic Copyright owners of those works. What this means is that the moment a logo designer creates a logo for your business, they are immediately the Copyright owner of your logo! Absent an agreement that assigns/moves/transfers ownership from the logo designer to you as the business owner, you will not own the rights to the logo. Therefore, when hiring a designer, you should always have some kind of written agreement and that agreement should include language that grants you all the rights in and to the logo. 

Luckily, both of these scenarios are pretty well known to designers who are using these online design sites or designing logos on their own. Always keep in mind that your logo is a representation of your company and it is an intellectual property asset that you (and only you) should own.

This post is intended for general informational purposes and is not intended to be, and shall not be relied upon, as legal advice.