— IP Strategy · Artificial Intelligence · Brand Protection The threat to your brand is no longer just competitors who outspend you. It's a machine that can clone your idea overnight — and a legal system that will side with whoever filed first. Dawn Owens Ross, Esq. USPTO Reg. #74,969 · Patent Attorney · IP Strategist 8 MIN READ Let me say something that most IP attorneys won't say out loud: the legal system was not built to protect the person with the best idea. It was built

Your brand's visual identity — your packaging, your label, your color palette, your product design — is protectable IP. Most founders don't know this until it's too late.

When news broke that Taylor Swift — a 14-time Grammy winner with one of the most powerful entertainment brands in the world — was being sued over trademark infringement, the instinct for most people was to treat it as celebrity gossip. It is not. It is one of the clearest illustrations of how intellectual property law works, and more importantly, why it matters to every founder building a product brand, a coaching business, a creative enterprise, or anything with a name and a

I recently had the privilege of sitting down with Carlton Brown, co-founder of FUBU — one of the most iconic urban fashion brands in American history — and what came out of that conversation fundamentally reframed how I talk about intellectual property to entrepreneurs. This wasn't a lecture. It was a masterclass in what it actually means to build a brand, own it, and let it work for you. Left to Right: J. Alexander Martin - Co-Founder FUBU, Dawn Owens Ross - Co-Founder ROR L

Dawn Owens Ross, Esq. | Ross & Owens Ross Law Creative founders build businesses on relationships — on trust, aesthetic alignment, and collaboration. Which is exactly why so many of them end up misclassifying workers without realizing it. Here's the honest breakdown. The Side Piece: Independent Contractor Your contractor shows up when they want, how they want. They bring their own tools, their own process, their own aesthetic. You hired them to deliver a result — not to fol

Stop Running Your Business Like an Employee — It's Costing You Everything. Your Business Is Waiting for You to Act Like the CEO If you're a small business owner reading this between answering client emails, fulfilling orders, scheduling appointments, handling a billing dispute, and trying to figure out why your Instagram isn't growing, this post is for you. You started a business for freedom. But somewhere along the way, your business became another job. A demanding one with

IP is not just for giant corporations. If you're building something unique—whether it’s a brand, product, course, invention, or artwork—you have intellectual property

When fathers in Georgia face challenges enforcing their custody rights, the weight on their shoulders isn’t just legal—it’s emotional,...

In the digital era, content creators are redefining what it means to be a brand. From Instagram reels to long-form YouTube videos, your...