Defending an idea, discovery, concept, or trade secret is just as important as protecting tangible property. Also called “products of the mind”, intellectual property needs to be protected from theft (Lau & Johnson, 2014). Depending on the type of intellectual property being guarded, there are several legal protections that can be enacted. Those who want to protect a unique way of training that allows them to maintain a competitive advantage may be protected under Trade Secrets law. To protect an invention from those who would steal the idea and make a similar product, the intellectual property owner may want to file a patent with the federal government. In business, to keep ownership of a unique product name, a trademark would be protected under federal law. Original creative works such as photographic art can be protected from the unauthorized direct use by copyright. But there are limits to intellectual property law so that society can benefit from utilizing the information as well.