How to Copyright a Logo You Paid a Designer For

How to Copyright a Logo You Paid a Designer For

You’ve got a new logo. It feels like the heart of your business, and you want to protect it. Your first thought is, “I need to copyright this.”

That’s a savvy instinct. But it’s likely the wrong one.

Most entrepreneurs asking how to copyright a logo are asking the wrong question. They're using one tool's name while thinking about a different tool's job. It’s like asking how to use a hammer to drive a screw. You might make it work, but it will be messy, ineffective, and probably cause damage.

This guide will give you the correct answers. We'll cover the steps to file a copyright, but more importantly, we’ll untangle the confusion so you can protect your brand correctly.

Copyright Isn't a Magic Shield

Let's clear up the biggest myth right away. The moment a designer finishes creating a sufficiently original logo, a copyright technically exists. This is called “automatic copyright.”

Sounds great, right? Free, instant protection.

Except it's practically useless in a real fight. An automatic, unregistered copyright is like owning a piece of land without a deed or title. 

If someone builds on your property, you can stand there and insist it’s yours, but proving it in court will be a nightmare of old emails, file creation dates, and “he said, she said” arguments.

Official registration is the deed. It creates a public record of your ownership, dated and verified by a government body. 

In the U.S., registration is a prerequisite to filing an infringement lawsuit and allows you to sue for statutory damages and attorney’s fees—real financial leverage. 

Without it, your “automatic” copyright is a paper tiger.

The Question You SHOULD Be Asking: Copyright vs. Trademark

This is the most critical concept to grasp. Getting this wrong is the most expensive mistake you can make in branding.

Copyright and trademark are not interchangeable. They are two different legal tools that protect two different aspects of your logo.

What Copyright Protects: The Art

Copyright is concerned with the logo as a piece of visual art. It protects the unique combination of lines, shapes, colours, and artistic flourishes that make up the design.

It prevents someone from taking your exact logo file, putting it on a t-shirt, and selling it. It stops a different company from using your logo illustration as part of their marketing materials. It protects the art.

What Trademark Protects: The Brand Identity

A trademark protects your logo's role in the marketplace. It's about commerce. A trademark ensures that when customers see your logo, they know the product or service comes from you, not a competitor.

The Nike Swoosh is a perfect example. As a piece of art, it's a simple checkmark. Its copyrightability is debatable. But as a trademark, it's a global powerhouse. 

Trademark law stops a new shoe company from wearing a similar swoosh on its sneakers. It prevents consumer confusion. The same goes for the Apple logo on a computer.

They’re Different Tools for Different Jobs

For 99% of businesses, trademark is the most critical brand protection tool. It’s what defends your position in the market.

Copyright is an excellent, valuable layer of protection if your logo qualifies as a piece of original art. You don’t choose between them; you determine if you need one or both.

Can Your Logo Even Be Copyrighted? The Originality Test

Here’s another hard truth: not every logo can be copyrighted.

Your designer may be brilliant, but if the final product isn’t sufficiently creative in the eyes of the law, the copyright office will reject it. 

They don't care if it looks “clean” or “professional”; they care if it's an original work of authorship.

What the Copyright Office Looks For

The legal standard requires a “modicum of creativity.” This is a low bar, but it’s still a bar. The design needs some spark of artistic expression. 

A complex illustration, a unique stylised character, or an intricate pattern will almost certainly qualify.

The design must be original to the author, meaning it wasn't copied from somewhere else.

What Gets Rejected Instantly

You cannot copyright certain things, no matter how essential they are to your brand.

• Names, titles, and short phrases: Your business name is not copyrightable. That's what trademarks are for.
• Typefaces and fonts: You can’t copyright the design of the Helvetica font. You can, however, license the font software. Like the Coca-Cola script, highly stylised or illustrative lettering can sometimes qualify as artistic enough for copyright.
• Simple geometric shapes and symbols: A plain circle, a basic star, a standard checkmark. These are considered design building blocks in the public domain for everyone to use.
• Ideas and concepts: You can’t copyright the idea of using a lion to represent strength. You can only copyright your specific, artistic drawing of a lion.

An Example: The Illustrative vs. The Generic

Imagine you run “Apex Solutions.”

Logo A: A detailed, hand-drawn illustration of a mountain peak with a unique geometric pattern representing a circuit board etched into its face. This is highly creative, original, and has dozens of artistic choices embedded within it. This is likely copyrightable.

Logo B: The letter ‘A' is in a standard Times New Roman font and enclosed within a simple blue circle. This design consists entirely of a standard letter, a common font, and a basic shape. It has zero original artistic authorship. This is not copyrightable.

The Step-by-Step Process to Register Your Logo's Copyright

If you’ve determined your logo is a unique piece of art, registration is the next step. The process varies by country, but here are the basics for the US and UK.

Disclaimer: This is for informational purposes. For legal advice, consult an intellectual property attorney.

For U.S. Businesses: Using the U.S. Copyright Office (USCO)

The only official place to do this is at the government's website. Avoid third-party services that just fill out the same form for you at a considerable markup.

1. Prepare Your Files: Have a high-quality digital logo copy (JPEG, PNG, etc.) ready to upload. You need a clean version without any other text or symbols unless they are part of the logo.
2. Go to copyright.gov: This is the only official site. Navigate to the registration section.
3. Start a New Registration: You will use the “Electronic Copyright Office” or eCO system. Select “Register a Work of the Visual Arts.”
4. Fill Out the Application: This is the most critical part. You'll need to provide information on the author (the person who created it), the claimant (who owns it, which should be your company), the creation date, and whether it's been published. Be meticulous and accurate.
5. Pay the Fee: The fee for a single application by a single author is typically between $45 and $65. It's a small price for significant legal protection.
6. Upload Your Logo: You'll be prompted to upload the digital file of your work. This is the “deposit” the USCO keeps on record.
7. Wait. And wait. Processing times can be long, often between 3 and 9 months. However, your effective registration date is the day you submitted your application, as long as it's approved.

For U.K. Businesses: A Different Approach

The United Kingdom operates differently. There is no official government registry for copyright. In the U.S., copyright protection is automatic when creating an original work.

Since there's no central database, the key in the UK is evidence. You must prove you created the work and when you created it.

• Keep meticulous records of your design process: sketches, drafts, invoices, and communication with timestamps.
• Some private companies offer “copyright registration” services. These services do not grant you any official government status. They act as an independent third party, time-stamping your work and holding a copy in their database to provide evidence of its existence on a specific date.

The Elephant in the Room: Who Owns the Copyright?

This is a landmine for many new business owners. You paid a designer thousands for a logo. You own it, right?

Not necessarily.

The Default Setting: The Designer Owns It

In copyright law, the work's creator is the initial copyright owner. By default, the freelance designer or the agency that designed your logo holds the copyright, even if you paid for their time. They grant you an implied license to use it, but they own the underlying IP.

How to Take Ownership: Contracts Are Non-Negotiable

For you, the business owner, to own the copyright, the rights must be formally transferred in writing. A verbal agreement or a simple invoice is not enough.

This is typically handled in one of two ways in your design contract:

1. Work for Hire: This is a specific legal term (primarily in the U.S.) where you are considered the “author” from the beginning. This must be explicitly stated in a signed agreement before work begins.
2. Copyright Assignment: This is the more common method. The designer creates the work, owns the copyright briefly, and then, via a clause in the contract, “assigns” or “transfers” all ownership rights to you upon final payment.

This paperwork is the most critical document in your branding process. A professional agency like Inkbot Design handles this paperwork as a standard part of any project, ensuring you have complete, unambiguous ownership of your new brand asset.

The Shepard Fairey Case: A Cautionary Tale About Stock Art

Can you grab an image from a stock photo site and build your logo around it? Think again.

Artist Shepard Fairey created the iconic Obama “Hope” poster for the 2008 presidential campaign. It was later revealed that the poster was based on a 2006 photograph taken by an Associated Press (AP) photographer. Fairey had used it without permission. The AP sued for copyright infringement, and the parties eventually settled out of court.

The lesson is severe: when you use stock imagery, you almost always buy a license to use it under specific terms. You do not own it. You cannot file a copyright or a trademark on a logo that contains stock art, because you don't own the underlying creative work. It's a foundation built on someone else's property.

The Final Verdict: Should You Bother Copyrighting Your Logo?

After all this, what's the verdict?

Yes, If Your Logo Is Genuinely Artistic.

If your logo is a detailed mascot, a complex illustration, or custom-drawn art, then absolutely. A copyright registration adds a powerful layer of protection against direct duplication of the artwork. It's a relatively low-cost, high-value insurance policy on your creative asset.

But Your First Priority Is Almost Always the Trademark.

For most businesses, the immediate threat isn't someone stealing the art file. It's a competitor in your city or industry using a similar-looking name or logo that confuses your customers and dilutes your brand. A trademark is the tool that fights that battle.

The Smart 4-Step Strategy

Here’s how to think about it in the correct order:

1. Create an Original Logo: Invest in a unique design that avoids stock art and generic elements. This is the foundation of everything.
2. Secure Full Ownership: Ensure your contract with the designer includes a written copyright assignment clause. Get a copy for your records.
3. File for a Trademark: Protect your brand's name, logo, and identity within your commercial sector. This is your primary shield.
4. File for a Copyright: If the logo meets the “modicum of creativity” standard, register it with the copyright office to protect the artwork from being copied. This is your secondary shield.

Stop asking, “How do I copyright my logo?” and ask, “What's the right strategy to protect my brand?” Understanding the difference between copyright and trademark means you're already ahead of 90% of your competition.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Protect Your Brand the Right Way

Understanding intellectual property is crucial, but it all starts with a logo worth protecting. A generic design built from templates isn't just complex to protect legally—it fails to make a mark with your audience.

If you're ready to create a genuinely original and ownable brand identity, the team at Inkbot Design can help. Explore our logo design services to see how we build memorable brands from the ground up, with all the proper paperwork included.