Intellectual Property Litigation Attorney in Los Angeles

Last updated: November 2026. Reviewed by Pavel Kolmogorov, California business litigation attorney (State Bar No. 321018).

Los Angeles companies call an intellectual property litigation attorney when a name, a design, a piece of content, or a confidential process has been taken, or when they are the ones accused. Kolmogorov Law, P.C. litigates trademark, trade dress, copyright, trade secret, and false advertising disputes for Los Angeles County businesses in the Central District of California and in Los Angeles Superior Court. Our office is in Irvine, and we work with Los Angeles clients in person and by video. The firm litigates and does not prosecute patents.

Call (909) 235-6116 or contact us online to discuss an intellectual property dispute in Los Angeles.

IP litigation services for Los Angeles businesses

Trademark and trade dress. Claims against a business using a confusingly similar name, logo, or package, and defense of companies that receive a cease and desist letter. The Lanham Act reaches any word, name, symbol, or device used in commerce that is likely to cause confusion about origin, sponsorship, or approval. (15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)(1)(A).) Our Los Angeles trademark page covers that work in detail.

Copyright. Infringement claims and defenses involving photographs, video, music, software, and marketing content. See our Los Angeles copyright page.

Trade secrets. Emergency injunctions, departing-employee cases, and defense of accused employees and the companies that hired them, described on our Los Angeles trade secret page.

False advertising. Claims that a competitor's advertising misrepresents the nature, characteristics, or qualities of its goods or yours. (15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)(1)(B).)

Name and likeness. A business that knowingly uses a person's name, voice, photograph, or likeness to advertise or sell without consent is liable for the greater of $750 or actual damages, plus profits from the use not already counted in those damages. The prevailing party recovers attorney's fees. (Civ. Code, § 3344, subd. (a)(1).) In a city built on endorsements, these claims come up often. Our right of publicity page explains them.

License disputes and online takedowns round out the practice.

The Los Angeles businesses we represent

Apparel, beauty, and consumer brands. Production, post-production, and other vendors that serve the entertainment industry. Software, gaming, and e-commerce companies. Restaurants and hospitality groups whose names carry their goodwill. Agencies, photographers, and creators. We represent the owner of the rights in some cases and the accused business in others.

Chambers and Partners ranks the firm in its USA Spotlight 2026 guide for general commercial litigation in Orange County. The firm is a BBB Accredited Business, rated A.

Three Los Angeles IP disputes

A Venice skincare brand sells in a distinctive amber bottle with a hand-lettered label. A newer competitor arrives in the same boutiques with packaging close enough that store staff shelve the two together. The claim is trade dress infringement. Because the packaging is not registered, the brand must prove that the features it wants protected are not functional. (15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)(3).)

A Burbank post-production house loses a senior editor to a rival shop. Within weeks, three long-time clients receive bids from the rival that undercut the house's rate card by the same margin on every line. The house needs to know what left with the editor before it decides whether it has a trade secret case.

An Arts District creative agency keeps running a campaign featuring a performer after the license term ended. The performer's lawyer sends a demand under section 3344. The agency's exposure turns on the dates in the license and on how long the ads stayed up.

Injunctions come first in most IP cases

Most clients want the conduct to stop before they want money. Trademark law helps a plaintiff here. A party seeking a preliminary injunction or restraining order under the Lanham Act is entitled to a rebuttable presumption of irreparable harm once it shows a likelihood of success on the merits. (15 U.S.C. § 1116(a).) California's trade secret statute separately provides that actual or threatened misappropriation may be enjoined. (Civ. Code, § 3426.2, subd. (a).)

Early relief has a price. Evidence that would otherwise be gathered over months has to be ready in days, and a thin motion can set the tone for the rest of the case. We decide with the client whether to move at the outset. Our TRO and preliminary injunction page describes what the court will want to see.

Federal or state court in Los Angeles

The choice of court is partly made for you. Federal district courts have original jurisdiction over civil actions arising under the copyright and trademark statutes, and no state court may hear a claim arising under the copyright laws. (28 U.S.C. § 1338(a).) Trademark claims may be filed in either system, and plaintiffs usually choose federal court. A state-law unfair competition claim can travel with a substantial and related federal copyright or trademark claim. (28 U.S.C. § 1338(b).)

Los Angeles County belongs to the Western Division of the Central District of California, which holds court in Los Angeles. (28 U.S.C. § 84(c)(2).) Its downtown courthouses include the First Street Courthouse and the Roybal Federal Building and Courthouse.

State-law claims, including California trade secret, unfair competition, and section 3344 claims, may be filed in Los Angeles Superior Court. Business cases filed downtown are heard at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse on Hill Street. A federal trade secret claim is available when the secret relates to a product or service used in interstate or foreign commerce. (18 U.S.C. § 1836(b)(1).)

We weigh the speed of early relief, the procedural rules, and the cost of each forum before filing.

How the firm works on an IP case

The same attorney takes the first call, argues the motions, and tries the case. Before I give an opinion I look at the chain of title: who created the mark, the artwork, or the code, what they signed, and what was registered and when. In my experience, gaps in the ownership documents cause as much trouble as gaps in the proof of copying.

A lawsuit is one tool among several. A demand letter backed by the documents, a takedown through the platform where the copying appears, or a license that turns an infringer into a paying customer may get the client what it needs. If the other side will not move, we file. Los Angeles clients meet with us by video, in Irvine, or at their own offices. Our Los Angeles business litigation page describes the rest of our work in the county.

What to bring to the first meeting

Bring registrations or application numbers, or proof of first use if nothing is registered. Add the agreements with whoever created the logo, the content, or the software. Dated screenshots of the other side's use are essential. For a trade secret matter, bring the confidentiality agreements and any forensic findings. If you received a demand letter, bring it and anything it cites.

Frequently asked questions

A competitor in Los Angeles copied our packaging and our product photos. Do we need separate lawyers for the trademark and copyright issues?

No. One lawsuit can carry both. The packaging claim arises under the Lanham Act's trade dress provision and the photograph claim under the Copyright Act, and both can be filed together in the Central District of California in Los Angeles. A litigator who handles both bodies of law can also add California unfair competition claims.

We received a cease and desist letter from a large company's lawyers about our brand name. How quickly do we need to respond?

The date in the letter is the sender's deadline, not a court's. Still, do not ignore it. In a California trademark dispute, an unanswered letter tends to lead to a lawsuit, and the sender will point to it later. Have the letter reviewed, preserve your records of first use, and send a measured reply. Sometimes the better move is to file first for a declaration of non-infringement.

Are IP cases in Los Angeles heard in federal or state court?

Both, depending on the claim. Copyright cases must be filed in federal court, which for Los Angeles means the Central District of California downtown. Federal trademark claims may be filed in either court. California trade secret, unfair competition, and right of publicity claims may be filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.

Does the firm have an office in Los Angeles?

No. Kolmogorov Law, P.C. is based in Irvine, in Orange County. Pavel Kolmogorov appears in Los Angeles Superior Court and in the Central District of California, and the firm serves Los Angeles County businesses from Irvine, by video, and in person when a matter calls for it.

Does the firm handle patent matters?

The firm does not prosecute patents, meaning it does not prepare or file patent applications. Its intellectual property practice is litigation over trademarks, trade dress, copyrights, trade secrets, false advertising, and related California claims such as unfair competition and the right of publicity, in state and federal court.

Talk to a Los Angeles intellectual property litigation attorney

Call (909) 235-6116 or contact us online. Kolmogorov Law, P.C. is located at 327 Magnet, Irvine, CA 92618, and represents businesses throughout Los Angeles County.

This page provides general information about federal and California law and is not legal advice. Outcomes depend on the registrations, the evidence, and the court.