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Trademark Lawyers & Cost

Ann Wylie

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I asked: Can anyone recommend a trademark lawyer -- perhaps someone not affiliated with a huge firm -- who can register trademarks at a reasonable price? And what is a reasonable price, anyway?

Referrals

-- Patt Schwab, Ph.D.

Ann Speckman is the woman I used in Seattle is in a small firm (2-3 lawyers). Speckman Law Group, (206) 382-1191, annws@citylinq.com.

-- Patty Hendrickson

M. Paul Hendrickson has been a proprietary rights attorney since the 60s. You can't advertise with these words but he's never lost a patent or trademark case. He does good work and only works Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. 608-526-4422 in Wisconsin.

-- Valerie Y. Jones

A number of GSA members have used Holmes Hawkins at King and Spalding in Atlanta. You can contact NSA members Dan Thurman and Steve Moroski for references.

-- Simon Atkins

Marcia A. Auberger, Esq., 202/962-4969 (Firm: Venable) and tell her I sent you. The prices are reasonable, the firm is well-known, her work is admirable and you'll get your trademarks through.

-- Angela Brown

I use Craig Snyder with www.trademarksonline.com.

-- Cyndi Farrar

Maria Speth 302 N. 1st Ave. 9th Floor Phoenix AZ 85003 602/258-1700, speth@phxlaw.com.

-- Izzy

I use Lucy Peterson at Balboni Associates, 413-737-0399. Nice lady, great prices.

-- Michele Arden Stern

We are currently working with Patti Smart. She has always spent more time with us than her billable hours. Smart & Bostjancich 19 S LaSalle Suite 1300 Chicago IL 60603, 312-857-2424, pattismart@hotmail.com.

-- Dottie Burman

I'm a singer/songwriter/motivational entertainer/member of NSA and have been with my lawyer for several years. He's a music lawyer with a specialty in trademarks! Lloyd Jassin 1560 Broadway #600, New York NY 10036 212-354-4442, copylaw@aol.com. He'll probably give you a free initial consultation so you can see if there's a fit.

-- Susan Levin

Carol Davis is a trademark attorney who I have used for years and love her service. One woman operation. 310-541-7555.

-- Joan Stewart

I am in the process of having a trademark registered right now. I am using Sandy Swartzberg in Milwaukee, Wis. Call 414-325-3268.

-- Jim Waszak

Jeff Canfield, 312-661-2100.

-- Marsha Sims

I recommend Sara Goodman in Deerfield, FL; SaraLegal@aol.com. Her specialty is intellectual property law.

-- Anne Freedman

I've been dealing with Richard Morris of TradeMark Services, 100 West Avenue, Suite 1114, Miami Beach, FL 33138, phone 305-673-6686 and fax 305-673-6872. He's very responsive, explains things clearly, is realistic and reasonable.

Expect to Pay

-- Patt Schwab, Ph.D.

Something like $300 plus the fees the feds charge.

-- Angela Brown

Typical trademark lawyers in my experience charge somewhere from $1,200 - $1,800 to register a trademark. (Usual cost for a complete trademark is $560.)

-- Michele Arden Stern

You can expect to pay between $750-$1,000 for each trademark in each classification due to the process that the USPTO requires, plus billable legal hours. After doing a little research on Trademark attorneys, we found that Patti's hourly rate $190 was in the middle range.

-- Steve Kaye

I explored this and found the cost to obtain service mark to be about $2,200 to $2,500.

-- Larraine Segil

The only ones I have found are in DC and want a minimum retainer of $5,000 and have incredible hourly rates of $400 per hour.

-- Leslie

I don't know if there *is* any reasonable trademark attorney. Every time our attorney touches any paper it costs us money. The past year, my partner (who does our commerce) estimates we've spent about $2,500 in lawyer fees for a trademark. Plus about $800 for the trademark gods. I have no idea if this is reasonable or not. And -- it took a year for the trademark to clear (there was someone who weakly contested but then fell by the wayside with no further todo).

-- Joni Daniels

A reasonable price for a trademark can vary, but the application is $350.00. You can do the preliminary work on your own through the Internet. An attorney will do a more extensive search, which will cost a few hours. (3 - 6) If your application is rejected, and you want to appeal, that's additional letters and reapplication (5-9 hours).

-- Patti L. McCord

I researched Trademark attorneys and finally decided to do it myself. Unless you have something complicated, it's pretty easy. And if it is words you are trademarking (as opposed to a drawing or picture), you can do it all on line. Go to the Website for the U.S. Trademarks and Patents Office. They have great step by step instructions.

-- Gloria Dunn

You can save a lot of money by doing it yourself. It is rather easy. Get a workbook by Nolo Press on trademarks. They have a store in Berkeley, California. You could call and ask the latest title. Cost is approximately $35. Fee for registering trademark is around $240 (could be more by now), which you pay anyway. If you get a lawyer, it could cost big bucks.

-- Jay Arthur

Do all of your trademarks yourself. Go to the trademark website, http://www.uspto.gov to find out how. Start by checking for pre-existing trademarks. (Someone may have already thought of your mark, but there are many classes of goods and services and they may not have registered the trademark in your class.) If not, immediately begin putting the (tm) symbol on your word, phrase or graphic. The person who wins the trademark game is the FIRST TO USE IT IN COMMERCE, not the first to file.

The trademark application is a two-page form, plus a single sheet for the mark, plus three copies of the trademark being used in commerce. The fee is around $345 for each class registered. If you don't quite get the wording quite right, the government lawyers are very helpful about getting the phrasing right.

-- Bob Blake

It takes a little reading, but you can register your mark online at = www.uspto.gov (US Patent & Trademark Office). The cost is $325. I was going to take the lawyer route but when I learned that I could save over $300, I decided to take the time and do it myself.

-- Alan

It can be done without a lawyer. The problem doing that is that it is risky because there is much more involved than simply clicking on a website. We did the search. We found that mine would be accepted. My lawyer suggested that I do the more exhaustive search that would have cost more. He believed that it probably wouldn't be necessary sensing that I didn't really want to spend the money. Well, it was wrong. The government turned my application down after all the work that was done because of a similar trademark.

Other Advice

-- Al McCree

We only trademarked in Tennessee; the lawyer's reasoning being that if anyone wants to do a national trademark, they will have to research all the states anyway.

-- Simon Atkins

You WANT an attorney from a big firm that is known at the Patent and Trademark Office. You get it through with more likelihood for success and a quicker rate. Do NOT go with a small-time attorney to save $$$.

-- Michele Arden Stern

Be prepared for a lengthy process. The attorneys for the USPTO have very large case loads.

-- Alan

You are aware that we can TRADEMARK and use the tm symbol through the same process as we COPYRIGHT and use the c in a circle symbol. Registering a trademark or a copyright just adds additional protection against other people using your designs or materials if you should go to court.

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