Steffen Explains Nonprofits' Trademark Concerns

Concerns over branding and trademark issues, once associated exclusively with for-profit organizations, have been spreading to the realm of nonprofits, prompting some among them to take legal action against trademark infringement.

"It's a real balancing act for nonprofits," James Steffen told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "On one hand, nonprofits don't want to stamp down the enthusiasm of people contributing to causes. And they don't want to spend a lot of money on lawyers."

But, Steffen added, similar names or logos could confuse the public and donors or hurt the reputation of one charity if another one with a similar-sounding name gets into trouble. Read more.