From Business Owner to North Carolina Based Trademark Lawyer
"Brand protection & trademark law is what I am doing in my law practice day in and day out and I love it."
I graduated law school in 2008, and I practiced law until 2016. And then if you're googling me, you're gonna see a big gap in my legal resume, until 2026. So what was I doing in that gap of ten years, and how does it make me an even more effective trademark attorney for you now? I'm sharing my journey, and how my time away is helping me be an even more effective trademark attorney for your business or brand.
Why I Chose Trademark Law in the First Place
I had a vision even before law school (I worked at law firms in high school and college to pay the bills) that I definitely wanted to do more business, transactional, or real estate law. I wanted to be the type of lawyer that people are excited to come work with; as opposed to dealing with emergencies or conflict or litigation. I knew that wouldn't be my strength.
So while in law school, I started really honing in my electives and specialty courses into things like taxation of intellectual property and corporate law, securities, trademarks, and copyrights, and really just started to see how valuable intellectual property can be for the right types of businesses to both create as well as protect and leverage out in the business world.
I passed the bar exam on the first try and gained my license in Maine and Massachusetts, and was one of the youngest attorneys in the state of Maine at the time I was sworn in, in the fall of 2008.
Building a Trademark Practice, Long Before North Carolina
Balancing the creative with the protectability
I started my career at a large-ish (for Maine) regional law firm and was hired into the Corporate Department. I happened to sit a few doors down from the only trademark attorney in the firm, and got to hear him on calls, get some assignment from him, and receive some mentoring. Whenever I could get pulled in on trademark work, I was the most lit up.
I started growing my own client base from the get-go as I stepped into my law practice, specifically by offering practical education in the intersection of business and intellectual property. I was doing educational talks, lunch and learn events for chambers of commerce, and had the chance to work with some amazing brands as clients. I also found a unique niche of doing in-house education for branding and marketing agencies, to help their creative team know when to pull me in for trademark clearance / vetting. I even recorded a recent podcast episode about this relationship that turned into a wonderful win-win referral funnel.
In each of these scenarios, I thrived as the subject matter expert on trademarks for these groups of business owners and creatives because I could help bridge the gap between what their creative direction was, and the path to obtaining protection. As a creative person I could speak their language. And relate to the fears and challenges they were facing, with more nuance than just the black and white “lawyer-y” answers.
Growing my expertise
As my practice (and maybe reputation) grew, I was recruited to a couple of different law firms of different sizes. I was always attracted to new opportunities to learn from specialized partners I would be paired with, and over a few career moves really began to establish my knowledge, experience and expertise in this area. I was even determined to be a Top Forty Under 40 in the state of Maine at the time, for my legal work in intellectual property.
Co-founding a law firm for the creative economy
I was married at the time to another attorney. And it ended up feeling like it made more sense to just set up a law firm together. Instead of competing against each other.
We worked together to blend our clients, and establish a law firm that is still up and running in Portland, Maine. The focus was to serve as corporate and intellectual property counsel to growing businesses in the creative economy. To fill a need we were seeing; many small businesses needed legal counsel earlier on, before their legal budget could match the costs of working with bigger law firms. We focused on setting up a lean practice that could support businesses in the creative economy, artists, business owners, authors, speakers, entrepreneurs in the startup phase who needed counsel around corporate contracts and trademark matters.
I handled all of the trademark matters and again, continued to grow my name in the area and my client base, and was starting to even acquire clients nationwide just based on referrals and some of the press that I was receiving.
Why I Stepped Away From Practicing Law in 2016
Unfortunately, here’s what happened (and I truly believe it all happens how it's meant to) my marriage deteriorated; for very personal and specific reasons, it became obvious that I could not continue on in that relationship.
I ended up walking away from the marriage, and it became very stressful because that also meant I was walking away from my livelihood and from the law practice that I had built. This was a big period of surrender and walking in faith, to trust that more good was meant to come from reclaiming what I needed for myself.
From Trademark Lawyer to Business Owner: Ten Years on the Other Side of the Table
What I decided to do was to pursue more of the entrepreneurial endeavors I had been involved in and interests that I had. I decided to go all in on figuring out if I could be on the other side of the table from my clients and actually become an entrepreneur.
Now, I did this for ten years. During those ten years, I was involved in a lot of different versions of how I was bringing my expertise out to the world in one-on-one strategy and business coaching, in business consulting, in some done-for-you services. For a couple years, I actually founded and ran a marketing agency specifically targeting the support of coaches, healers, and thought leaders. I have been a mutt in business, gaining loads of experience in online marketing, running businesses, business systems, and how to lead myself and teams as a business owner.
From Business Owner Back to Trademark Lawyer
In the spring of 2026, I had a series of conversations that led me to revisit what it would look like to reactivate my law license to get back to practicing law.
And so in June and July of 2026, I really threw myself into setting out all of the logistic steps, making sure that I knew what I needed to do for my license and insurance and all of the requirements for banking and getting the foundations of a law practice set up based on my Maine law license, but living in North Carolina.
It was so fortunate that my area of greatest expertise and interest was in federal trademark law. Because activating my Maine license actually allows me to offer federal trademark services across the U.S.
Because the practice of federal trademark law is based on federal law, as long as I have a license active and in good standing anywhere in the United States, I can serve clients who are anywhere based in the United States.
And so, Trademarks with Chelsea was born.
What It's Like to Work With a US Trademark Lawyer Who's Been a Business Owner
I am excited to be setting this law practice up with all of the experience that I have from running multiple online businesses, from coaching, consulting, running a marketing agency. I'm bringing all of that together to truly work on creating a high-level client experience, bringing my subject matter expertise of trademarks, but presenting them in a very approachable way.
Flat fees and clear communication
Working with exclusively flat fees and very transparent pricing for My Services, and knowing how important it is to business owners to have clear timelines, expectations, and communication…I am creating my client journey with this all in mind. I want my clients to see me as a thought partner in their business, and as someone they can call on early and often when their decisions dip into branding and trademark protection.
A thought partner, not just a legal form filer
I believe that business owners deserve someone who can have a truly boots-on-the-ground understanding of business. I have seen too many situations where a creative entrepreneur felt completely shut down, or a deal got stalled, or a brand fizzled out because of black-and-white legal advice. Of course, the laws are clear, but taking the time to help clients understand the application of the law to their facts can often expose new opportunities or approaches that could lead to the same goal a different way. That kind of problem solving and pivoting can be so critical in the fast paced world of marketing.
Federal Trademark Law Is All I Do
I am very stringently & exclusively practicing trademark law. That is what I have set up my practice for. That's what I'm insured for, and that is what I'm doing all day every day when I am in my working mode. It's not as though I'm an estate planning attorney who once in a while does a trademark or a litigator who does a trademark for their friend, even though they don't do it often.
This is what I live, breathe, and do every day. When I am not working, I am possibly homeschooling my son a few days a week, volunteering at his outdoor school, out for a hike in the woods or walk on the beach, or reading my current obsession on my Kindle.
Ready to Protect What You're Building?
Book a free consultation, and let's talk about where your business is and how you could Balance Creativity & Protectability™ in your brand growth.
New Here?
I'm Chelsea Fournier—a U.S. trademark attorney for business owners and credentialed professionals who've built something worth protecting. I work with therapists, coaches, consultants, speakers, and other service providers and practitioners who are past the idea stage—established enough that a name, logo, or tagline has real weight behind it.
Trademark work is the whole of my practice, not a service tacked onto something else. Every engagement moves through the same five stages — consultation, search, filing, intent-to-use, and maintenance — and I meet clients wherever they're starting in that process.
→ If you're not sure trademark protection makes sense yet, or just want clarity on timing and cost, the Free Consultation is a no-pressure place to start.
→ If you need to know whether your name, logo, or tagline is actually available, the Trademark Strategy Session and Clearance Report + Call screen for conflicts before you invest any further.
→ If you're ready to protect what you've built, Filing Your Application and the intent-to-use filings that follow get your mark on record the right way.
→ If you already have a registration, Registration & Maintenance keeps it active and enforceable, so the protection holds up long after the paperwork's done.
Wherever you're starting, there's a path that fits. Explore my Services + Flat Fee Pricing Schedule for more details.
