If you’ve built something (an invention, a brand, a creative work, a piece of software) you already know how much is riding on protecting it. What you may not know is how quickly those rights can be eroded without the right legal foundation in place.
At COFFYLAW, LLC, our attorneys have over 80 years of combined experience handling intellectual property matters for individuals, startups, and established companies throughout the region. We offer free consultations and take a straightforward approach: understand what you’ve created, identify the risks, and put protections in place that actually hold up. Our New York City, NY intellectual property lawyer is ready to help. Reach out today to get started.
Most IP attorneys understand the law. Fewer understand the technology behind it. Emmanuel Coffy, the firm’s founding attorney, holds an M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Florida Institute of Technology and spent years as a USPTO Patent Examiner before transitioning to private practice. His J.D. is from Seton Hall University School of Law. That background means when he evaluates a patent application, a licensing dispute, or a trade secret matter, he can analyze the technical substance, not just the legal wrapper around it.
He is admitted to practice before the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, the U.S. District Court of New Jersey, and the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the federal appellate court with jurisdiction over New York. For clients pursuing or defending IP rights in New York City, that admission matters. As an IP lawyer in New York City, NY, Emmanuel brings a depth of technical and legal knowledge that few practitioners can match.
Unlike general practice firms that handle IP on the side, intellectual property is the foundation of our practice. That focus allows us to spot issues and opportunities that generalists often miss.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “CoffyLaw, LLC under the direction of Emmanuel Coffy, Esq. is nothing short of a Super Law Firm offering outstanding advice and services on Intellectual Property Law and related activities. As the president of an interdisciplinary company, Fusion Clinical Multimedia, Inc., I have greatly benefited from the critically important recommendations of Mr. Coffy who draws from his strong track record both in engineering and the law.” — Kenneth Gross
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COFFYLAW handles IP matters across the full range of intellectual property law. Whether you’re protecting something new or enforcing rights you’ve already established, here’s where we can help.
Federal law governs most core areas of intellectual property — patents under 35 U.S.C. § 1 et seq., copyrights under 17 U.S.C. § 101 et seq., and trademarks under the Lanham Act at 15 U.S.C. § 1051 et seq. But New York adds its own layer that clients operating here need to understand.
New York courts, particularly the Southern District of New York, handle some of the most significant IP litigation in the country. The Second Circuit (the federal appellate court covering New York) has issued influential decisions on copyright fair use, trademark likelihood of confusion, and trade secret misappropriation. How your case is positioned from the beginning affects how it plays out in these courts.
New York also has its own trade secret framework. Before the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016, New York courts relied on common law to protect confidential business information, and that body of case law still shapes how disputes are analyzed locally. The USPTO remains the starting point for federal patent and trademark protections, and understanding the interplay between federal registration and New York enforcement is something we navigate regularly for clients.
Understanding these distinctions is what separates effective IP counsel from attorneys who handle IP incidentally.
Before anything else, you need a clear picture of what IP assets you actually have and whether they’re properly documented. We’ve seen businesses operate for years without realizing that ownership of key IP was never formally established, or that an agreement with a contractor transferred rights they never intended to give away. Documentation matters, and whether freelancers retain rights to work they create is a question that comes up more often than you’d think.
In IP, timing is almost everything. Patent applications must be filed before certain public disclosures trigger statutory bars. Copyright registration, while not required for ownership, affects what remedies are available if infringement occurs, including whether statutory damages and attorney’s fees are on the table. Trademark rights develop through use, but registration provides advantages that unregistered marks simply don’t have. Acting promptly when you have something to protect is consistently better than acting after the fact.
Having rights and enforcing them effectively are two different things. Sending a cease-and-desist letter without understanding how the other side will respond can accelerate a dispute into litigation you weren’t ready for. Conversely, waiting too long can weaken your position or affect available damages. We advise clients on the full picture before any enforcement action: what the realistic outcomes are, what litigation would involve, and whether alternative approaches make more sense given the circumstances. When IP disputes emerge in unexpected contexts, having that strategic framework in place matters.
Acquisitions, joint ventures, licensing deals, and employment agreements all carry IP implications that are easy to overlook until something goes wrong. The question of whether intellectual property can be sold affects deal structure, valuation, and post-closing risk. We review and draft transaction documents with those issues front of mind.
Protecting intellectual property in New York City requires attorneys who understand both the law and the technology behind it. Whether you need to file a patent, register a trademark, address infringement, or build an IP strategy from the ground up, COFFYLAW is ready to help.
Free consultations are available. We’ll give you a direct assessment of where your IP stands and what steps make the most sense. Visit ourcontact page orschedule a consultation today.
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