TERMS OF USE

TRADEMARK PROSECUTION ATTORNEY-CLIENT TERMS AND CONDITIONS

This Agreement is made between Hartmans Law Corporation (“Attorney”) and you (“Client”) for the provision of legal services as set forth below.

1. CONFLICT CHECK. Attorney’s provision of services is conditioned upon Attorney’s successful completion of a conflict check. At Attorney’s discretion, if a conflict exists, Attorney will decline the representation and return all funds.
2. SCOPE OF SERVICES, ATTORNEY’S DUTIES AND CLIENT’S DUTIES. Attorney will provide trademark legal services to Client, which may include a comprehensive federal, state, and common law trademark search, drafting an opinion letter based on the search results, consultation regarding the search results, preparation and filing of Client’s trademark application, monitoring the application after filing, and responding to Office Actions issued by the USPTO which require thirty (30) minutes of time or less. This Agreement does not cover litigation services of any kind, whether in court, arbitration, administrative hearings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, or government agency hearings. A separate written agreement for these services or services in any other matter not described above will be required. After trademark registration or renewal, Attorney will inform Client of future renewal/maintenance deadlines. Because these deadlines are in the distant future, Client is responsible for docketing and filing future renewals. Attorney disclaims responsibility for providing further notice for such future deadlines. Additionally legal services may be performed pursuant to a separate agreement. Client agrees to be truthful with Attorney and not to withhold information, to cooperate, to keep Attorney informed of any information or developments which may come to Client’s attention, to abide by this Agreement, to pay Attorney’s bills on time, and to keep Attorney advised of Client’s address, telephone number, and email address. Client will assist Attorney by timely providing necessary information and documents. Attorney will prepare trademark applications and filings with information and data provided by Client. If information in the trademark filing is incorrect, erroneous, untrue, or invalid, whether known to the Client or not, the trademark registration may be subject to cancellation. Submitting incorrect, erroneous, untrue, or invalid information to the trademark office may result in Client liability to third parties, which could result in an award of monetary damages. Attorney does not have responsibility to verify information provided by Client that is ultimately included in trademark filings. Attorney disclaims liability for consequences of trademark filings that contain incorrect, erroneous, untrue, or invalid information provided by the Client.
3. LEGAL FEES. Client agrees to pay the flat fees on the Fee Schedule. Flat fees are fixed and constitute complete payment for the performance of applicable services under this Agreement and do not depend on the amount of work performed. Client acknowledges that this fee is negotiated and is not set by law. The fee shall be paid by Client in advance of the services to be rendered. Client has the right to deposit the flat fee into Attorney’s Client Trust Account until the fee is earned; and a refund of any amount of the fee that has not been earned in the event the representation is terminated or the services for which the flat fee has been paid are not completed. By proceeding and making payment herein, Client waives this right and agrees to the flat fee being deposited into Attorney’s operating account. If Client does not agree to waive this right, please contact ehartmans@hartmanslaw.com or +1 (310) 954-8512.

FLAT FEE SERVICES (DOES NOT INCLUDE FILING FEES)

4. DEPOSIT OF FEES TO CLIENT TRUST ACCOUNT. Trademark office filing fees are required for trademark applications. Client will deposit an amount required for filing fees, which will be held in Attorney’s Client Trust Account and be deemed an advance deposit for fees and costs incurred in this matter. The fees and costs will be charged against the Deposit. Client agrees that Attorney’s right to recover fees and costs from the Deposit or any subsequent deposit held in Attorney’s Client Trust Account becomes fixed the date a bill is sent to Client. Client authorizes Attorney to withdraw the funds from Attorney’s Client Trust Account the date a bill is sent to Client. Client acknowledges that the Deposit is not an estimate of the total fees and costs to be charged by Firm, but merely an advance. In the event there is any money from any Deposit remaining in Attorney’s Client Trust Account after Attorney’s final bill is satisfied, that money will be promptly refunded to Client.
5. TRADEMARK CLEARANCE STUDIES. Attorney recommends that Attorney perform a trademark clearance study before Client’s use of trademarks or Client’s filing of applications to register trademarks. Trademark clearance studies search for prior conflicting trademark registrations and applications, and conflicting unregistered trademarks. Failure to perform clearance studies can result in the trademark office’s refusal to register the trademark because of a prior conflicting registration or application. Use of a trademark without performance of a clearance study can also result in inadvertent infringement of third-party trademark rights. Trademark registration does not alleviate the risk of infringing the rights of an owner of an unregistered trademark. Trademark clearance studies and opinions do not guarantee results. Trademark studies provide Client information and data from which risk assessments can be made. Attorney relies on outside vendors to conduct searches for unregistered trademarks. The opinions and analysis are subject to limitations from the available data. Whether to use or apply to register a trademark considering risks of infringement or trademark office refusal is a business decision for the Client.
6. DISCHARGE AND WITHDRAWAL. Client may discharge Attorney at any time. Attorney may withdraw with Client’s consent or for good cause or if permitted under the Rules of Professional Conduct of the State Bar of California and/or applicable law. Notwithstanding the discharge, Client will remain obligated to pay Attorney at the agreed rates for all services provided and to reimburse Attorney for all costs advanced. When Attorney’s services conclude, whether by completing the services covered by this Agreement, or by discharge or withdrawal, all unpaid charges for fees or costs will be due and payable immediately.
7. DISCLAIMER OF GUARANTEE. Nothing in this Agreement and nothing in Attorney’s statements to Client will be construed as a promise or guarantee about the outcome of the matter. Attorney makes no such promises or guarantees. Attorney’s comments about the outcome of the matter are expressions of opinion only, are neither promises nor guarantees, and will not be construed as promises or guarantees. Any deposits made by client or estimate of fees given by Attorney are not a representation of a flat fee and will not be a limitation on fees or a guarantee that fees and costs will not exceed the amount of the deposit or estimate. Actual fees may vary significantly from estimates given.
8. NO TAX ADVICE. Attorney has not been retained to provide Client with any tax advice concerning any of the services. Any documents prepared by Attorney may have specific tax ramifications. The decision regarding which party shall own a trademark may have tax ramifications. To be sure Client understands and is certain of all the potential tax consequences, Client should consult with tax advisors regarding these matters.
9. PRIVACY; MARKETING; CONSENT TO USE OF E-MAIL; AND CLOUD STORAGE SERVICES. While providing legal services to you, Attorney may receive nonpublic personal information about you. All such information will be held in strict confidence and will not be disseminated to any person or entity outside Hartmans Law Corporation without your consent unless such disclosure is required under the applicable law. Client consents to the use of e-mail, which is not encrypted, by Attorney to communicate and transmit documents, acknowledging that there may be security risks to communicating in this manner. Client also consents to Attorney’s use of a cloud computing service with servers located in a facility other than Attorney’s office. Most of Attorney’s electronic data, including emails and documents, are stored in this manner. Client consents to having communications, documents, and information pertinent to the Client’s matter stored through such a cloud-based service. Client agrees that Firm may publicly disclose, on the Firm’s website or by any other means – including but not limited to publicly displaying Client’s website domain, name and logo – that Firm has provided legal services to Client. Client may withdraw such consent at any time but notice of such withdrawal must be made in writing and delivered to U.S. Eric Eagle Hartmans at ehartmans@hartmanslaw.com or 1590 Rosecrans Ave., Ste. D-225, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266. Such notice is valid if confirmation is provided by Eric Eagle Hartmans. It is recommended to seek confirmation if none is provided.
10. ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS. This Agreement, and any disclosures or additional consents, if applicable, contains the entire agreement of the parties. No other agreement, statement, or promise made on or before the effective date of this Agreement will be binding on the parties. If any provision of this Agreement is held in whole or in part to be unenforceable for any reason, the remainder of that provision and of the entire Agreement will be severable and remain in effect. This Agreement may be modified by subsequent agreement of the parties only by an instrument in writing signed by both of them.

THE PARTIES HAVE READ AND UNDERSTOOD THE FOREGOING TERMS AND AGREE TO THEM AS OF THE DATE ATTORNEY FIRST PROVIDED SERVICES.