My Copyrighted Material is Stolen and Sold for a Profit - What Can I Do?

[robertccvv]

Hi,

I have a copyrighted idea that I copyrighted in US & have that certificate from Copyright office.

I did sell that idea to some people for a price & had them sign a confidentiality agreement.

That idea now is stolen by at least 3 prominent people ( Who did not buy that idea from me ) & they are using it on their website & selling it thru books & CD/DVDs.

Here are my questions :

In any kind of a Lawsuit your success depends mostly on how good a lawyer is.


(1) So, When searching for a copyright lawyer how do I find a very successful lawyer ? Google can give you the names of firms & lawyers but how do I know how good are they ? The other party has money so they are going to get the best lawyers & hence I must have as good or better right ?

(2) Whenever I talk to a lawyer, I am going to have to disclose my idea in deatail to him. What precautions do I need to take to protect that idea is not going to be misused by an attorney ? Do I need to make some kind of written agreement with him ?

(3) If I was living in California & a person in New York violated me copyrighted material, which state do I need the lawyer from ?

(4) Do copyright lawyers work on a contingency basis like personal injury lawyers ?

(5) What does a Premier & Platinum lawyer mean ?

(6) Within how many years should I file a lawsuit after I discover my copyrights have been violated ?

(7) What if that time period has passed but the other party is still violating my copyrights as of now ?

Thank You.

[Mr. Knowitall]

What do you mean, you copyrighted an "idea"? Ideas are not subject to copyright.

[jk]

and what does;

I did sell that idea to some people for a price & had them sign a confidentiality agreement.

mean?

Did you transfer the copyrights or did you sell them a license?