Your attorney will carefully review your mark and make suggestions for improvement.

Your attorney will meticulously review your trademark design and create a keyword description of the mark so it can be searched in databases.

Your attorney will consult you on the width and breadth of the search that needs to be undertaken to make sure the mark is not already in use by others who will object to your application costing you legal fees to defend.

Your attorney will help determine what domain names are available to you.

Your attorney will help determine the classifications of goods and services that you must apply for protection under.

Your attorney will prepare or assist you in preparing the application documents and drawings.

Your attorney can review your drawings to insure they are sufficient or provide resources to have them created properly.

Your attorney will help you decide the geographical area your trademark should cover.

Your attorney will answer or help you answer the objections that the United States Patent and Trademark office will have to your application in a process called a Trademark Prosecution.

Your attorney can present you with a likely budget and timetable for the issuance of your trademark.

Your attorney can help you create a schedule for the timely payment of fees to maintain your mark.

Your attorney can help you save money by recommending the filing method resulting in the lowest fees.

Your attorney can help save time and money by helping to decide whether to file in use in commerce or intend to use.

The USPTO will review your application for completeness and conformity with the rules. If there are errors you will receive a notice from the Trademark office with an explanation. You will need to correct the errors or otherwise satisfy the trademark examiner.

You can hire an attorney to help you craft responses to these office actions if needed. You should generally hear something back from the USPTO within one year.

Generally, only an attorney can represent an applicant before the Office in Trademark and other non-patent matters.11

37 C.F.R. §11.14(b) Non-lawyers.

 Individuals who are not attorneys are not recognized to practice before the Office in trademark and other non-patent matters, except that individuals not attorneys who were recognized to practice before the Office in trademark matters under this chapter prior to January 1, 1957, will be recognized as agents to continue practice before the Office in trademark matters. Except as provided in the preceding sentence, registration as a patent agent does not itself entitle an individual to practice before the Office in trademark matters.

Consider your options carefully and order the product you need.

You can choose to do the process with or without an attorney’s help.

Complete our online questionnaire so we have all your information.

Send us your trademark.

Send us proofs that your Trademark is being used in commerce.

If you order a search we will conduct it and relay the results to you.

Based on what you find in your search make any final corrections to your application.

We electronically submit your completed signed application.

After this the USPTO will review your application. It may issue as is or they may contact you for additional information.

The USPTO may inform you of additional steps that need to be taken to register your Trademark. You need to respond to these office actions within the time limit stated or your application will be abandoned. A trademark attorney is available to help you if needed.

If your application passes all the hurdles it will be published for comment for 30 days. Other people can then comment on your mark. If there is no opposition to your mark, it will issue. If you do receive opposition to your mark you will have to address and overcome these objections.

If everything goes well you will receive a registration certificate.

If you haven’t used your mark in commerce yet you will receive a notice of allowance and you will need to use your mark in commerce within six months and send in proof to the USPTO. You can file for an extension if you need to. After this you will receive your trademark registration.

Using an attorney may save money

Using an attorney can save you money and more importantly time in the long run!

If you complete your trademark application incorrectly it can be rejected as over half are. Rejected applications will have to be corrected and re-submitted perhaps with the consequence of extra fees.

Additionally, no search is required but if your application is the same as other existing trademarks you wasted your money because the USPTO does not give refunds. Also, who wants to go into business and then immediately get a cease and desist letter from the holder of trademark rights in the name they want to use.

The Cyber Warrior is sure that no one is using his trademark and he wants help with the filing only. He doesn’t want to pay for any more searches and he doesn’t need an attorney. (Word trademarks are included, logos or designs are extra.) Once you determine that you are ready to go forward with a trademark application, we will prepare and file the application. All you have to do is complete our questionnaire and send us a scan of your trademark if it is a design and scans of your proofs that it is being used in commerce. You also sign the finished application. The Patent and Trademark Office has filing fees as well (i.e. $225-375/per class). This is an outside cost, which is in addition to our services.

The Research Champion just wants to be sure there is no pre-existing federal registration on his exact choice of words so we will perform a “Knockout Search” only. (Word searches are included, logos or designs are extra.) We will only search for an exact match in just the USPTO database. He is pretty sure that no one is using his trademark and he wants help with the filing only. He doesn’t want to pay for any additional searches and he doesn’t need an attorney. Once you determine that you are ready to go forward with a trademark application, we will prepare and file the application. All you have to do is complete our questionnaire and send us a scan of your trademark if it is a design and scans of your proofs that it is being used in commerce. You also sign the finished application. The Patent and Trademark Office has filing fees as well (i.e. $225-375/per class). This is an outside cost, which is in addition to our services.

Our “Just To Be Sure” product is for someone who wants a fairly in-depth “Registrability” search done and help with the filing. The search will include the USPTO database, domain search, google search, and state databases. (Word searches are included, logos or designs are extra.) He doesn’t want to pay for anything more and he doesn’t need an attorney. Once you determine that you are ready to go forward with a trademark application, we will prepare and file the application. All you have to do is complete our questionnaire and send us a scan of your trademark if it is a design and scans of your proofs that it is being used in commerce. You also sign the finished application. The Patent and Trademark Office has filing fees as well (i.e. $225-375/per class). This is an outside cost, which is in addition to our services.

Our “Peace Of Mind” product is for someone who wants an in-depth search done and help with the filing. The search will include extra effort searches of the USPTO database, domain search, google search, state databases, and un-registered databases. (Word searches are included, logos or designs are extra.) He doesn’t want to pay for anything more and he doesn’t need an attorney. Once you determine that you are ready to go forward with a trademark application, we will prepare and file the application. All you have to do is complete our questionnaire and send us a scan of your trademark if it is a design and scans of your proofs that it is being used in commerce. You also sign the finished application. The Patent and Trademark Office has filing fees as well (i.e. $225-375/per class). This is an outside cost, which is in addition to our services.

The process for a trademark usually follows this course:

    You give us the MARK and the proposed identification of the goods and services.

    We conduct a literal search on the USPTO, and some light Google searching and we prepare a report to you on the availability of the mark. If you have nationwide use and authorize a T&T (discussed below), we order a T&T Report and review the results, and then we report back to you on availability.

    If you decide to proceed, then it depends if the mark is “in use” or whether you merely have an intent to use the mark. If the mark is “in use”, we need the information listed below. If the mark is not in use, we do not need that below information, other than the graphic version of the mark if it is stylized, and the description of the goods and services

If the mark is in use, we need:

(a) the date (m/d/y) you first made any use of the mark (in its current form)

(b) the company that owns the mark and its full name, state of formation, address, phone, fax and email. If an individual owns the mark, we need that person’s name, address, phone, fax and email, as well as confirmation that they’re a US citizen.

(c) the date (m/d/y) you first sold your goods or services to a potential out-of-state buyer using the mark.

(d) If the mark is a logo or design mark (and not just words), we need a “picture” of the mark in electronic, format (we can accept AI, EPS, GIF, JPG, PNG, PSD and PDF). If the mark is not claiming color, the mark must be line art (black & white); if you are claiming color, then the color mark is OK. We will resize the image file, however, please provide the master image not less than 300 dpi, and not less than 300 pixels in height or width. Note that the symbol “TM” cannot appear on the drawing page. We can manipulate the file if need be to remove this.

(e) If the mark is for a product, we need product packaging or labeling or an instructional pamphlet bearing the mark. You can provide this in electronic, JPG format, as well if you wish (i.e. a picture of the box/packaging).

(f) If the mark is for a service, we need advertising materials which describe the services and bear the mark. You can provide this in electronic, JPG format, as well if you wish. If your services and the mark are represented on your website, you can just give us the address and I can get this “specimen” myself. Acceptable specimens may include newspaper and magazine advertisements, brochures, billboards, handbills, direct-mail leaflets, menus (for restaurants), and the like. However, printer’s proofs for advertisements, publicity releases to news media, or printed articles resulting from such releases, are not accepted because they do not show use of the mark by the applicant in the sale or advertising of the services. Business documents such as letterhead and invoices may be acceptable service mark specimens if they show the mark and refer to the relevant service.