Chat with MLC: Lawrence Smith

Hello, I'm Lawrence Smith, the Collection Management Director at the Mississippi Library Commission. I began working at MLC in 1996. My wife and I moved back to Mississippi after living in Nashville for five years to be closer to her mom. I have a degree in Criminal Justice from Mississippi Delta Community College, but I was a CNA up there. The pay for the same job in Mississippi paid half what I'd made in Tennessee, so I decided to try something new. I took the state exam for a postal clerk (I thought it was a federal exam!) and I did really well. I interviewed at both MLC and the Mississippi Department of Health on the same day. MLC called me back before I even made it back home to Yazoo City, so I accepted.

Meet MLC Monday: Lawrence Smith

We have been sharing a closer look at Mississippi Library Commission (MLC) staff with Meet MLC Monday for nearly five years now. Some people stay only a short time period before deciding that working at a library was not what thought it would be. Some, however, stay, evolve, and prosper, like Lawrence Smith. He is this week's Meet MLC Monday staff and he has been at MLC since October of 1996. 

While Lawrence is still our Patent Librarian, he has added a new title since we last featured him in January 2016. He is now also our Collection Management Services Director, taking on a supervisory position and assisting with cataloging our new books and other materials. Working with patents isn't as dull you might think. Lawrence has dealt with a wide variety of inventions over the years, including a vibrating toilet seat and, on one memorial occasion, a patron who wanted to provide a demonstration of his... "business" chair.

Lawrence says, "When I first started working at MLC, we were pulling books from the shelves to view patents and trademarks. Now everything is digitized and web-based. Cataloging was done by card catalog. Now it's digitized, too."

We asked Lawrence some hard-hitting questions about himself. It turns out he is a dog-loving coffee drinker who likes the cold. Who knew?! He also told us that, if he were to set up two characters from different books, he would choose Robin Hood and Cinderella. "Cinderella was very humble and hard working. Robin Hood was more of a villain and Cinderella, I think, could tame the wild side of him."

Stay tuned as we check back in with other long-time MLC staff from time to time here on Meet MLC Monday. Until next time, happy reading!

Not Even the Sky's the Limit!

Do you have a great idea? Have you thought of something innovative and extraordinary? Something unique and useful? If you are an inventor, an entrepreneur, or an innovator, you need to get to know the Patents and Trademarks division of the Mississippi Library Commission (MLC). For over twenty years, MLC's Patent Librarian Lawrence Smith has been assisting people in the know research patents and trademarks.

One such patron is Martin McCurtis. Many years ago, Martin was waiting for his then-fiancée to finish at the beauty salon. After seeing how uncomfortable she was after an hour under a hooded hair dryer, he was astonished that her hairdresser said she needed at least another hour before her hair would be dry. He had what he called a "God breathed" moment and got to work. Once finished with his design, he visited Lawrence at MLC to find out more about trademarks and patents. Lawrence pointed him in the right direction and now Martin holds the patent for the Momentum Hair Dryer. (You can read more about his hair dryer in this Mississippi Business Journal article.)

Lawrence Smith and Martin McCurtis in MLC's Patent and Trademark search room

While Lawrence is always available to assist patrons, representatives from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Mississippi Secretary of State's Office, and the Mississippi Small Business Development Center will be here tomorrow, July 10, for a special Patent and Trademark Workshop. The workshop runs from 8:30-4:30. Sign up through our Survey Monkey link and join the ranks of those innovators who have gone the extra step to make their inventions reality. Not even the sky's the limit!

MLC's Patent and Trademark Resource Center

In May of 1990 the Mississippi Library Commission was named the 69th Patent and Trademark Resource Center in the nation by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Patent, and Trademark Office. Figures indicated that a patent research library in Mississippi would generate between $3 million and $27 million in state personal income. To become a patent research library MLC had to acquire a minimum 20 year back file of U.S. patents, maintain selected documents supplied free of charge by the Patent Office, and make its data and services available to the public at no cost.

If you have questions regarding patents and trademarks, contact Lawrence Smith, Patent Librarian.

You can learn more about the history of MLC's Patent and Trademark Resource Center in Volume 23, Number 5, and Volume 25, Number 3 of The Packet.

Trademark Basics

We would like to thank Craig Morris, Managing Attorney for Trademark Outreach at the United States Patent and Trademark Office in Alexandria, Virginia, for presenting Trademark Basics at the Mississippi Library Commission today.  Participants learned a great deal of information concerning the process of obtaining a quality trademark.

If you were unable to attend Trademark Basics and are still interested in information on trademarks you may contact MLC's Patent Librarian, Laurence Smith, via email at lsmith@mlc.lib.ms.us or by phone at 601-432-4120.

Fun Fact: Escalator was actually a trademarked name for moveable staircases by the Otis Elevator Company; however, the name became a generic descriptive term and fell into the public domain after the 1950 Haughton Elevator Co. v. Seeberger case.  This meant that the Otis Elevator Company could no longer hold trademark protection on the word "escalator." 

Trademark Basics

The Mississippi Library Commission is pleased to announce that Trademark Basics, an informative workshop, will be held at our facility August 6, 2015 from 9:00 am - 11:30 am. Organized by Lawrence Smith, our Patent and Trademark Librarian and presented by Managing Attorney for Trademark Outreach at the US Patent and Trademark Office Craig Morris, this event will shed light on the mysterious and complex world of trademarks. A few of the many talking points are:

• Learn how trademark, copyright, patent, domain name, and business name registrations all differ.
• Critical factors to select a trademark that will be both federally registerable and legally protectable.
• The importance of doing a complete search and whether an attorney should be used.
• What may happen if another trademark owner believes it has stronger rights in a mark and issues a "cease-and-desist" letter.
• Information that the USPTO does in the federal registration process and how to avoid "scams" perpetrated by companies that request fees for services not required by the USPTO.

Email Mr. Smith at lsmith@mlc.lib.ms.us to RSVP. Light refreshments will be provided.