Intellectual property infringement is the violation of a protected intellectual property right. Intellectual property rights are the rights given to an inventor or creator by the government for their original works. This means that infringement is violating the right protected by a patent or trademark. Patents and trademarks give the inventor or creator the right to litigate against infringers, stop the infringer’s activity, and collect damages.
Without the protection of a U.S. patent, an inventor does not have any legal recourse in the event that someone makes, uses, sells, or imports their invention in the U.S. without permission.
Without trademark protection, a user cannot stop another with an identical or similar trademark from using it in commerce.