Business Attorney | Law Office of Maritza S. Nelson, LLC

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  • Home
    • COVID-19
  • Who We Serve
  • Practice Areas and Fees
    • General Counsel Service
    • Business Law >
      • Business Formation and Governance
      • Contract Drafting and Review
      • Business Purchases and Sales
    • Intellectual Property >
      • Copyright Law
      • Trademark Law
    • Employment Law
    • Nonprofit Law >
      • Non-Profit Formation and Governance
      • Tax Exempt Status
      • Non-Profit General Counsel Service
  • Attorneys
    • Maritza S. Nelson
    • Sarah Pollyea
  • Adding Value
    • Legal Audit Checklist
    • Legal Dictionary
    • 7 Common Legal Mistakes
    • Business Contracts: Review Checklist
    • Webinars >
      • HR 101: Managing the Growing Pains That Come With Growing Your Business
      • Hiring Independent Contractors
      • Legal Audit and Risk Assessment
      • Structuring a Social Enterprise
  • Blog
  • Scheduling
    • Prospective Client Scheduling
    • Existing and Former Client Scheduling
    • Networking Scheduling
  • Contact

Trademarks

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Trademark law is all about brand protection.

A trademark (or mark for short) is a distinctive word, phrase, logo, or graphic symbol that is used to identify the source of a product or service and distinguish your products or services from someone else’s.
Owning a federal trademark registration provides a number of significant advantages, including:
  • A legal presumption of your ownership of the mark and your exclusive right to use the mark nationwide on or in connection with the goods/services listed in the registration (whereas a state registration only provides rights within the borders of that one state, and common law rights exist only for the specific area where the mark is used);
  • Public notice of your claim of ownership of the mark;
  • Listing in the USPTO’s online databases;
  • The ability to record the U.S. registration with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to prevent importation of infringing foreign goods; 
  • The right to use the federal registration symbol “R”;
  • The ability to bring an action concerning the mark in federal court; and
  • The use of the U.S. registration as a basis to obtain registration in foreign countries (should your business expand internationally). 
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But registering a trademark is a complex legal proceeding.
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The USPTO assigns an examining attorney to every trademark application. The examining attorney runs a number of searches in the Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS) to look for "confusingly similar" marks that have either already been registered or have priority over your application.

You have to conduct a thorough trademark search 
before submitting your application to the USPTO. And even then, there's no guarantee that you'll find every potential mark that the examining attorney may raise an issue with. There is so much case law analyzing just what is confusingly similar and what goods and services are related, that it's a matter of conducting both a good search for the mark itself and good legal research.

The USPTO will not refund your application fee if your application is rejected

Learn more about Trademark Law.
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Flat Fee Pricing

All fees and services described on this site are for information purposes only and are subject to change at any time. Until we have both a signed Engagement Agreement and your initial payment, the Firm reserves the right to quote you a new or different fee for services based on the unique legal needs of your business.

Payment Plans
Payment Plans are available for an additional premium of 15%. All payment plans require a credit card authorization and are billed monthly. Payment plans are not available for rush delivery projects. Anticipated expenses are due with your first payment.
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Trademark Search and Registration: 

Design Marks - Trademark Search, Likelihood of Registration Analysis, and Registration: $2,475 per mark
+ $250 minimum USPTO fee per class
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Standard Character Marks - Trademark Search, Likelihood of Registration Analysis, and Registration: $2,225 per mark
+ $250 minimum USPTO fee per class​

If, based on the trademark search results, we decide not to proceed with registration, the Firm is required to refund the registration portion of the fee.

Federal Trademark Registration Only: $1,325 per mark
+ $250 minimum USPTO fee per class
Responses to Complex Office Actions are not included in this fee. Attempting to register a trademark without first conducting a trademark search and analyzing the likelihood of registration is not recommended.  
Extensions of Time: $350 
+ $125 USPTO fee

Requests to Divide: $350
+ $100 USPTO fee per new application created

Statement of Use: $1,200
+ $100 USPTO fee

USPTO Fees

Rejected Trademark Application?

Response to Complex Office Actions: $2,225
Appeals to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board: $3,125
+ $600 USPTO Fee

Trademark Monitoring and Maintenance:

Once your trademark is registered, it’s your job to protect it and enforce your rights. To do so, you must file certain maintenance documents in a timely manner and actively police your trademark.
Trademark Monitoring Service: includes Case Analysis plus the initial Cease & Desist Letter to suspected infringers. Further pursuit of a trademark infringement case will require the Firm's standard hourly retainer.

$1850/yr or $175/mo
Trademark Maintenance: In addition to monitoring your trademark, certain maintenance documents must be filed to maintain your trademark registration. Failing to meet the USPTO deadlines will result in the cancellation of your trademark. 
5-Year Trademark Filings: $850 per mark
(Section 8 Declaration of Use and Section 15 Declaration of Incontestability)
+$425 minimum USPTO Fees per class


10-Year Trademark Filings: $1,050 per mark
(Section 8 Declaration of Use and 
Section 9 Renewal)
+$525 minimum USPTO Fees per class

Other Trademark Related Services:

Customs and Border Protection Registration: $400 per registration number
+$190 CBP Registration Fee (per registration number and per class of goods for trademark registrations)
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Fictitious Name Registration / Renewal: $200
+$39 Secretary of State Registration Fee / $25 Renewal Fee

IP Licensing Agreement: $3,900
Add HIPPA Addendum / Business Associates Agreement: +$1,000
State Trademark Registration: $200
+$125 Secretary of State Fee


Trademark Assignment Agreement and Recording: $550
+$40 USPTO Fee / $25 Secretary of State Fee

Work for Hire Agreement: $450
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Traditional Hourly Rates

Where flat fees don't make sense, the Firm works on the traditional retainer basis. For general business needs, the Firm requires a replenishing retainer of $2,000/$1,000. The Firm bills at the hourly rate of $275 per hour for all attorney time and $125 per hour for all paralegal/law clerk time. The Firm bills in tenths of an hour increments. The Firm may from time to time require a larger retainer or replenishment in anticipation of significant work that the Firm reasonably believes cannot be covered by the standard retainer amount.
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The information contained on this website is not legal advice or legal opinion and should not be relied upon. Furthermore, nothing contained in this website is intended to create or establish, and does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. 

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