Thomas James - Cokato Copyright Attorney: The Law Blog of Thomas James

Thomas B. James is licensed to practice law in Minnesota and is admitted to the bar of Minnesota, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court. He is also authorized to represent clients in Copyright Office, Copyright Claims Board (CCB), Trademark Office, and Trademark Trials and Appeals Board (TTAB) proceedings. He is a member of the Minnesota State Bar Association, the American Bar Association, and the ABA Copyright and Emerging Technologies Committee.

When he is not practicing law, teaching, conducting legal research or writing, Cokato lawyer Tom James enjoys hiking, camping, and when he is not injured, running.

Experience

With thirty years of experience as a sole practitioner, he has handled a variety of cases. At the beginning of his career, he handled family, employment discrimination, appeals, and small business matters. He no longer practices family or employment law. For the past fifteen years, his practice at the Law Office of Tom James has been focused on trademark, copyright, small business, and nonprofit organization law.

Less formally known as Thomas James or simply Tom James, his current practice areas are primarily trademark and copyright. He also provides services to small businesses and nonprofits, helping them become established and apply for federal tax-exempt status, where applicable.

Founder of Echion CLE, he has developed and presented continuing legal education (CLE) courses on a variety of subjects. He has also been an adjunct professor at Minnesota State University.

He has also done a considerable amount of volunteer work. Organizations through which he has provided pro bono legal services include Central Minnesota Legal Services, as well as LegalCorps, and the Volunteer Attorney Network. He also provided pro bono legal services to the National Parents Organization, also to the GIBM, and others. He has served as a mock trial judge for high school students and as an arbitrator on the Dispute Settlement Board in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Education

Tom James received his Bachelor of Arts degree (B.A.) from the University of California – Berkeley. He received his Juris Doctorate (J.D.) from Southwestern University School of Law. He is also a certified Teacher of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TEFL/TESOL) and Teacher of Business English (TBE).

Books

E-Commerce Law: The Legal Compliance Handbook for Online Businesses, published by Echion, 2020). A guide to the law for online sellers, buyers and advertisers. E-Commerce Law explains what you need to know about the legal aspects of doing business over the Internet.

828 pp., 7.44 x 9.69. Index; tables of statutes and cases; bibliography.

Website Law (2017) A guide to copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity rights, defamation, pornography, and other laws regulating website content, including fair use, the public domain, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the Communications Decency Act, and other pertinent law.

This book is primarily for bloggers and owners of noncommercial websites. E-Commerce Law is recommended for owners of commercial websites.

410 pp. 6 x 9. Forms, appendices, bibliography, index.

The History of Custody Law The first and only comprehensive account of the history of the law of child custody from the ancient Mesopotamian law codes to the present-day schism between gender equality and polarity.

Minnesota attorney Tom James explains the evolution of key concepts like the maternal preference and tender years doctrine, the primary caretaker standard, the role of marital fault, “best interest” factors, the constitutionalization of parental rights, children born out of wedlock, child protection, third party rights, visitation, joint custody, and more.

He also discusses the impact of women’s movements and of late twentieth century welfare and child support legislation on American child custody law. The second edition includes a chapter on the rights of gay, lesbian, and transgendered parents; and an extensive bibliography.

340 pp., 6 x 9. Bibliography, index. 2014.

Domestic Violence: The 12 Things You Aren’t Supposed to Know. Is domestic violence strictly a male phenomenon? Are all women who abuse their partners acting in self-defense? In this book, Tom James conducts a meticulous and thorough examination of the scholarly research on domestic violence, coming to the unsettling conclusion that virtually everything we think we know about it is wrong. He explains why honesty and candor are our only real hope for bringing an end to this enormous social problem.

Amazon Author Page

Articles

“Child Custody Presumptions: From Fault and Gender to Equal Time,” Georgia State University Law Review article (vol. 42, Spring 2026): law review article tracing the origin and historical development of child custody presumptions in family and child custody law, from ancient times to modern-day America, from the maternal preference to new “equal shared parenting time” statutes. The article also includes the latest research on joint custody and equal shared parenting time.

“Overruling Rostker v. Goldberg: Toward an Equal Obligation to Register for Selective Service,” Nebraska Law Review (May, 2021) Minnesota attorney Tom James explains why the male-only Selective Service registration requirement violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution, and why Rostker v. Goldberg, the 1980 Supreme Court decision upholding it, should be overruled.

“Sales and Use Tax Nexus: The Way Forward for Legislation,” Mitchell-Hamline Law Journal of Public Policy & Practice, vol. 41, no. 1 (2020) Here, Cokato lawyer Thomas James critiques the United States Supreme Court’s establishment of volume thresholds for use in Due Process and Commerce Clause analysis of state sales and use taxes on interstate sales, and suggests ways Congress could act to relieve the burden of multiple state and local tax obligations on businesses that sell online.

“Assisted Reproduction: Reforming State Statutes After Obergefell v. Hodges and Pavan v. Smith,” University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender & Class, vol. 19 (2020) Cokato attorney, Tom James, discusses the impact of Obergefell v. Hodges and Pavan v. Smith on state family law statutes pertaining to paternity and parentage determinations. What changes will state legislatures need to make to their laws to accommodate the constitutional requirement that parents in same-sex couples to be treated the same as parents in opposite-sex couples? Tom James answers.

“Protecting Copyrights in Professional and Academic Writing,” Pulse (2020). Attorney Tom James explains the rights that academic and professional authors have in their works and how to protect them after they are published.

“Copyright Enforcement: Time to Abolish the Pre-Litigation Registration Requirement,” Illinois Law Review (Fall, 2019). The Copyright Office can sometimes take a year or more to issue a registration certificate. Cokato attorney Thomas James argues that this has unfair consequences for authors and other copyright owners. He suggests that the time has come for Congress to abolish the pre-litigation registration requirement.

“E-Commerce Sales Taxes: What Your Online Business Needs to Know,” AllBusiness.com (June 17, 2019)Post-Wayfair tax advice for small business who sell online.

“Use Tax Nexus: The Illusory Utility of Volume Thresholds,” Tax Notes – State (April 29, 2019). Cokato attorney Thomas James critiques the United States Supreme Court’s adoption of volume thresholds to assess the constitutionality of state sales and use taxes under the Due Process and Commerce clauses of the United States Constitution.

Thinking Clearly About Presumptive Joint Physical Custody, Minnesota Joint Physical Custody Presumption Study Group Report (January 14, 2009)

Courses

IP Issues in Probate Cases

National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA) course offered live in December, 2024 and now available on-demand at the NALA website.

Joint Custody and Equal Shared Parenting

A continuing legal education program offered by Echion CLE, it featured presentations by Dr. Daniel Fernandez-Kranz, Donald Hubin, and Carl E. Knochelmann, Jr.

Trademark Search Skills Training

This was a three-part continuing legal education series offered in 2024 to teach attendees how to conduct a trademark search or update existing search skills. Included demonstrations and practice exercises to help students gain proficiency in searching the USPTO’s database with field tags and RegEx (Regular Expressions).

It also included explanations of what qualifies as a trademark; types of trademarks (word, design, sound, trade dress, etc.); categories of marks; trademark registration and registration systems; the legal requirements for a valid trademark; duration of trademark rights; the Trademark Modernization Act; ethical issues in searching and clearing trademarks; Particular emphasis was given to the concept of “likelihood of confusion,” including the DuPont and Sleekcraft factors, and USPTO and judicial guidance on such things as foreign and legal equivalents, unitary consideration, and relatedness.

More information at the EchionCLE course page.

IP Law for Non-IP Attorneys

An overview of copyright law, including sources of law, the kinds of works that receive protection, when a copyright does (and does not) come into existence, how long it lasts, transfers, registration, infringement, and enforcement. “Mighty Marks” trademark attorney Matthew Kulseth presented an overview of trademark law, including sources of law, kinds of trademarks, scope of protection, when a trademark does (and does not) come into existence, likelihood of confusion, distinctiveness, duration, transfers, infringement, and registration. This course was sponsored by EchionCLE.

The New Copyright Small Claims Court

The Copyright Alternative in Small Claims Enforcement Act (CASE Act) called for the creation of a copyright small claims tribunal within the U.S. Copyright Office for small claims involving either misrepresentation in a DMCA takedown notification or counter-notification, or copyright infringement. This course explained everything you need to know about this new tribunal: Who the judges are; the amount and kinds of claims that can be heard; the kinds of relief available; opting-out; records; pleadings; service; the e-filing system; discovery; hearings; conferences; effect on the parties’ legal rights; effect on court proceedings; defaults; judicial review; and more.

This course was originally offered as a live webinar from EchionCLE.

Registering Copyrights in Music and Music Albums for Non-IP Attorneys

This course explained the various ways that copyrights in music and sound recordings can be registered in the United States, with demonstrations of the process for each kind of application.

Part 1 provided information about the registration process and the meanings of critical terms. This includes key concepts such as derivative work, work made for hire, publication, deposit, and best edition. Preregistration, adverse claim registration, filing methods, and fees are also covered.

Part II laid out the eligibility requirements for each kind of application form – the Single application, the Standard application, Group Registration of Unpublished Works (GRUW), and Group Registration of an Album of Published Musical Works and/or Sound Recordings (GRAM). The GRAM application was new in 2021. It offers a way to save hundreds, potentially over a thousand dollars in filing fees. Instructor Thomas James also discussed registration of a group of songs as a collective work, the advantages and disadvantages, and the risks.

Part III described what happens, or can happen, after you file, how long you can expect to wait, how long you have to respond if the Copyright Office contacts you about an application, how you can challenge a denial of registration, and some things to consider before you do.

Finally, there was a concluding segment on Declarations of Ownership in Musical Works (DOMWs) – what they are, when you should file them, how to complete them, and how and where to file them.

1.5 Standard CLE credit was approved in Minnesota for this course.

Copyright Registration of Songs and Music Albums with Minnesota attorney Thomas James

This course explained the various ways that copyrights in music and sound recordings can be registered in the United States, with demonstrations of the process for each kind of application.

Part 1 provided information about the registration process and the meanings of critical terms you will need to know. This includes key concepts such as derivative work, work made for hire, publication, deposit, and best edition. Preregistration, adverse claim registration, filing methods, and fees are also covered.

In Part III, Mr. James described what happens, or can happen, after you file.

*This course is offered at Udemy. Check the website frequently. Udemy often offers significant discounts, sometimes as much as 80% off the price of a course.

Child Sex Abuse Claims: Statutes of Limitations and Revival Laws

Legislatures have been making sweeping and dramatic changes to both civil and criminal statutes of limitations for child sexual abuse. Some of these eliminate the limitations period for this kind of claim; some extend them; some apply prospectively only; some apply retroactively to revive formerly time-barred claims – at least for a limited period of time. And more legislation is on the way. Minnesota attorney Tom James explained the complexities of these statutes and provided updated information about existing laws and new legislation in this area.

Course materials included a state-by-state guide to applicable statutes of limitations, claim revival law, and discovery tolling rules, with a compendium of each state’s relevant statutory provisions.

1.0 Standard CLE credit was approved in Minnesota.

The Gender Paradigm in Family Court

Historically, men and women were confined to rigidly defined social roles determined by sex. The past fifty years have seen a wholesale rejection of rigid gender roles and stereotypes. Attorney Thomas James hosted this course examining whether family courts have kept pace with these changes, and explored possible explanations for why they have not, focusing on the Gender Paradigm in child custody and domestic violence cases. John Hamel, PhD, LCSW, Don Hubin, PhD, Mandy Morrill, MA, EdD, LMHC, NCC, William Hoskovec, JDTom James, JDMolly Olson, and Jonathan Heisey-Grove participated.

2.0 Elimination of Bias credits were approved in Minnesota. California approved it for 2.0 LSCLE Family Law Specialist credits and 2.0 MCLE credits, including 1 Diversity/Inclusion credit. Subfield areas/hours: B/1.00, F6/1.00. It was approved for CLE credit in many other states, as well.

Trademark Law: Key Concepts

An overview of trademark law, prepared and presented by Minnesota attorney Thomas James. Over the years, Cokato lawyer Tom James has helped many clients get their trademarks registered with the USPTO. By the end of this course, the student should have a working knowledge of trademark law, the requirements for a valid trademark, how to choose one that is strong and distinctive, and what goes into deciding whether a trademark is confusingly similar to an existing one. Equipped with this knowledge, the student will be in a better position to perform and evaluate the results of a search. The student will also learn how to protect trademark rights, what recourse is available if someone uses a trademark without permission, and core defense concepts like fair use, abandonment, naked licensing, and the first sale doctrine. The course concludes with an overview of the USPTO registration process. This course is intended for a broad audience, including but not limited to attorneys, paralegals, small business owners, and entrepreneurs. *Check the Udemy website.