Thank you for visiting Legalmatter, P.C.!
Focus
Although we offer a variety of services and are always open to addressing your most pressing legal needs, our passion is protecting your brand! Our goal is for every business client to have all its trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Your brand is your business! It represents your business persona – how you relate to your customers and others. It conveys your business values, the quality of your goods and services, and embodies your company’s goodwill.
We want your brand … the bedrock of your business … to be protected!
History
The firm was established in 1993 and formally organized as a professional corporation in 2006.
Bruce E. Matter, Esq., is the sole owner and attorney in the firm. In 1982 he graduated from what is now known as the George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School (then known as George Mason University School of Law) where he served as Managing Editor of the Law Review.
Bruce is admitted to practice law in Maryland, District of Columbia, Virginia, Florida, and California, and has been representing business clients of all sizes across a variety of industries since 1982.
He started practice as an associate with a small intellectual property firm in Alexandria, Virginia assisting with patent litigation and trademark work. He took an in-house position in 1985 with Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc. (“HBJ”) in Orlando, Florida. At the time, HBJ was one of the world’s largest publishing companies. While at HBJ Bruce handled issues related to author contracts (drafting and negotiations), subsidiary rights, software development and licensing, trademark and copyright issues, and commercial lease negotiations for HBJ’s offices across the United States.
He later moved on to work as principal counsel for Sea World, Inc. in San Diego, California in 1987. At Sea World in San Diego, Bruce was responsible for all legal work for the park including employment, construction, marketing and advertising, entertainment (contracts for live shows, music, talent, set design, and video and film productions), and environmental and other regulatory compliance issues.
In 1993, Bruce returned to the Washington, DC metropolitan area and started his own practice in Maryland keeping a focus on trademark, copyright, and general business law. Early clients came from his contacts in the publishing industry, including HBJ. He represented publishers before the U.S. Copyright Office helping to register copyright in secure test materials and other works. He also became principal outside counsel for advice on negotiating license agreements with libraries, business groups, and other consortia for online access to the publisher’s scientific, technical, and medical journals.
In the mid-to-late 1990s, in addition to practicing law, he also co-owned a television production company that produced two documentaries: Slave Ship that aired on Discovery Channel and Discharged Without Honor: The Brownsville Raid that aired on The History Channel.
Continuing On!
From the early 2000s, Bruce’s practice has served business clients in a role akin to that of General Counsel. He has also worked as co-counsel with attorneys at other law firms assisting with trademark, copyright, patent, software licenses, and other transactional needs. The Firm just adopted its new brand and logo in 2023. Legalmatter, P.C. is a registered trade name for the Law Offices of Bruce E. Matter, P.C., a Maryland professional corporation.
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