The RegistryCounty Record · California

Intellectual Property Attorneys in San Luis Obispo County, California

Counsel for what you invent, write, and brand. In San Luis Obispo County, that work runs through the Superior Court of California, County of San Luis Obispo. This directory presents intellectual property records from official State Bar of California data in neutral order.

A Central Coast county mixing a university town, wine country, and coastal land use, its downtown courthouse sits blocks from Mission San Luis Obispo. Venue for most intellectual property matters arising in the county lies with the Superior Court of California, County of San Luis Obispo, seated at San Luis Obispo.

The law also keeps time: three years for copyright claims; trade secret claims run three years (Cal. Civ. Code § 3426.6) under 17 U.S.C. § 507(b). Patent damages reach back six years (35 U.S.C. § 286). Trademark claims under the Lanham Act borrow analogous state periods and are shaped by laches. The plaque below carries the citation; the roster that follows carries the rest.

This page is the San Luis Obispo County chapter of the registry's statewide record · Intellectual Property Lawyers in California collects all 58 counties.

The clock & the court

Statute of limitations

Three years for copyright claims; trade secret claims run three years (Cal. Civ. Code § 3426.6).

17 U.S.C. § 507(b)

Patent damages reach back six years (35 U.S.C. § 286). Trademark claims under the Lanham Act borrow analogous state periods and are shaped by laches.

Court of record

Superior Court of California, County of San Luis Obispo.

County seat: San Luis Obispo

Official court information, locations, and filing rules: www.slo.courts.ca.gov

Intellectual Property · San Luis Obispo County roster

30 attorneys on the official State Bar of California roll list intellectual property among their practice areas with an address of record in San Luis Obispo County.

27 of them hold an active licence; the remainder are recorded as inactive and are not currently eligible to practise.

The roster concentrates in San Luis Obispo (16), Cambria (3), Nipomo (2) and Pismo Beach (2).

Admission years on this roster run from 1977 to 2025.

The employers most represented here are Crafted Legal, Inc. (2).

Allen D. Danner

Intellectual Property · Pismo Beach

Bar #251363 · Admitted 2007

Official record

Emilie K. Elliott

Business Law · San Luis Obispo

Bar #240792 · Admitted 2005

Official record

Merrill C. Haber

Business Law · Cayucos

Bar #114903 · Admitted 1984

Official record

Mary Angela Harris

Estate Planning · San Luis Obispo

Bar #118739 · Admitted 1985

Official record

Marcus T. Hunt

Intellectual Property · Pismo Beach

Bar #246626 · Admitted 2006

Official record

Matthew S. Kennedy

Bankruptcy · San Luis Obispo

Bar #125620 · Admitted 1986

Official record

Bruce D. Lathrop

Business Law · San Luis Obispo

Bar #151135 · Admitted 1990

Official record

Thomas F. Lebens

Intellectual Property · San Luis Obispo

Bar #167816 · Admitted 1993

Official record

Matthew T. Lopez

Business Law · San Luis Obispo

Bar #312008 · Admitted 2016

Official record

Grant W. Margulieux

Intellectual Property · Arroyo Grande

Bar #342949 · Admitted 2021

Official record

Intellectual Property matters in San Luis Obispo County

The matters this field covers, as Californians search for them. Each attorney's own profile states which of these they take.

  • trademark registration and disputes
  • copyright infringement
  • patent prosecution and litigation
  • trade secrets
  • licensing agreements
  • domain name and online infringement
  • DMCA takedowns
  • entertainment and brand rights
  • software and technology licensing
  • IP due diligence in business sales

Have a intellectual property matter? Submit your case for review.

Open a free case file, choose how attorneys may contact you, and review any terms they send. You decide whom to contact and whether to proceed.

In the last 30 days attorneys have read 1 filed matter on the registry.

Submit your case for review

Legal information, not legal advice · The AI reception identifies itself

Intellectual Property questions, cited

Do I need to register a copyright to be protected?

Protection attaches automatically when an original work is fixed in tangible form (17 U.S.C. § 102), but registration is required before a U.S. author can file an infringement suit (17 U.S.C. § 411, confirmed in Fourth Estate v. Wall-Street.com (2019) 586 U.S. 296), and timely registration unlocks statutory damages up to $150,000 for willful infringement and attorney fees (17 U.S.C. §§ 412, 504–505).

What is the difference between a trademark, copyright, and patent?

A trademark protects brand identifiers (names, logos, slogans) in commerce (15 U.S.C. § 1051 et seq.); rights arise from use and strengthen with federal registration. A copyright protects original creative works (17 U.S.C. § 102). A patent protects inventions for roughly 20 years from filing (35 U.S.C. § 154) and only a registered patent attorney or agent may prosecute applications before the USPTO.

How are trade secrets protected in California?

Under the California Uniform Trade Secrets Act (Cal. Civ. Code § 3426 et seq.) and the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act (18 U.S.C. § 1836): information with independent economic value from secrecy, subject to reasonable protection efforts, is enforceable against misappropriation. Claims run three years from discovery (Civ. Code § 3426.6). California pairs this with a strong ban on employee non-competes (Bus. & Prof. Code § 16600).

Does my employer own what I invent or create in California?

Work created within the scope of employment is generally the employer's (17 U.S.C. § 201(b) for copyrights; invention-assignment agreements for patents). But Cal. Lab. Code § 2870 voids assignment provisions reaching inventions developed entirely on your own time without employer equipment or trade secrets, unless they relate to the employer's business or your work, a protection unique to a handful of states.

What should I do if someone is infringing my trademark or copying my work?

Document the infringement, confirm your registrations are in order, and act promptly; remedies favor diligent owners, and laches can bar delayed claims. Options range from DMCA takedown notices for online copies (17 U.S.C. § 512) and cease-and-desist letters to federal suits seeking injunctions and damages (15 U.S.C. § 1116–1117 for trademarks; 17 U.S.C. §§ 502–505 for copyrights).

Legal information, not legal advice.

From the answer files

Intellectual Property by city in San Luis Obispo County

Related counsel in San Luis Obispo County

Intellectual Property in nearby counties

Source: 17 U.S.C. § 507(b) · State Bar of California licensee records · Checked: · Maintained by the California Attorney Registry from official State Bar of California records. Legal information, not legal advice.

Read the record. Then decide.

Describe your matter once, review the verified records, and place the call; the choice is always yours.

Find Your Counsel

278,688 attorneys · 58 counties · Official State Bar records