Usage of a gun&#39;s design
<p>I am developing a game, and will be using guns in my game, I just am unsure of a few things. From what I understand, I need written permission to use the name of a gun due to the name being IP, but what about the gun's actual design? If I were to recreate a gun to give it the same 'Look', would infringing upon IP even be something to worry about?</p>

<p>Edit: I am not looking for a way to rip-off someone's IP, just for information so that I can get some guns designed, I am not full of ideas for what they should look like, so I'd like to base the design off of real guns.</p>

<p>While <a href="http://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2010/8/23/trade-dress-its-all-about-looks/">a gun's appearance can have protection under "Trade Dress,"</a> in addition to having design patent protection, <a href="http://www.arentfox.com/newsroom/alerts/video-game-developer%E2%80%99s-unauthorized-use-trade-dress-protected-first-amendment">at least one video game has been found in court to have "fair use" protection for trade dress</a>: See <a href="http://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-9th-circuit/1485435.html"><em>E.S.S. Entertainment 2000, Inc. v. Rock Star Videos, Inc., et al.</em></a>.</p>

<p>However, to determine the legality of a specific use of intellectual property you would have to consult a competent lawyer.</p>

intellectual-property