Intellectual property is the body of law (statutes and court opinions) that protects a person’s original works. There are generally four types of intellectual property: (1) patents; (2) copyrights; (3) trademarks; and (4) trade secrets. For example, patent law protects the works of people who create new utilities for chemicals and machines (utility patents), new designs (design patents), and new plant varieties (plant patents). Copyright law protects new works of authorship such as books, movie scripts, paintings, poetry, and songs. Trademark law protects the names and identifying marks (logos) of products and companies. And trade secrets are pieces of information that have economic value from not being generally known to the public or discoverable by lawful means, and that the owner strives to keep secret.

In South Carolina, as in all states, intellectual property law is primarily governed by federal statutes, given that the Constitution grants Congress the power to regulate this area. Patents are protected under the United States Patent Act, which provides exclusive rights to inventors of new, useful, and non-obvious inventions, including utility patents, design patents, and plant patents. Copyrights are secured under the Copyright Act, which safeguards original works of authorship, ranging from literature to art and music. Trademarks are governed by the Lanham Act, which protects brand names, logos, and other identifiers that distinguish the source of goods or services. Trade secrets are protected both by the South Carolina Trade Secrets Act, which mirrors the federal Uniform Trade Secrets Act, and the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act, providing remedies for misappropriation of confidential business information. While federal law provides the framework for intellectual property rights, state law can also play a role, particularly in enforcement and in providing additional remedies for infringement or misappropriation.