International Associate Program

International trademark practice is often associated with urgent deadlines, which are client-driven. There is no way to avoid this fact. A U.S. firm must be flexible enough to provide swift service to its international associate attorneys since those attorneys must deliver prompt service to their clients.

Not only do we understand this dynamic, but we have also developed efficient systems to provide swift service while maintaining high quality. We are especially well-positioned using advanced software to render prompt, quality advice and trademark prosecution and maintenance services to our international associate clients.

Quality service is a priority, but we also know that impractical and unpredictable legal fees make it difficult, if not impossible, for our international associates to be competitive in their home countries.

As a result, unlike many U.S. firms, we do not invoice our international associates multiple times during the individual stages of U.S. trademark prosecution. We do not charge for routine correspondence, such as reporting a Notices of Publication and the issuance of the Certificate of Registration. Instead, we charge a one-time fee for trademark registration and maintenance. We believe that by offering a predictable legal cost, our international associates are better positioned to service their clients effectively.

We believe that high-quality legal advice and service is the standard. Excellent legal advice should not be available only to those who pay a premium. We provide the highest level of trademark advice while at the same time offering the most competitive pricing because we are not constrained by evaluating our attorneys’ productivity based on the billable hour.

We provide prompt and expert U.S. trademark registration and maintenance services to our foreign associates. Jason Nardiello has a long history of delivering quality trademark services to trademark attorneys around the globe. Because of the experience representing some of the most famous global companies, we understand our international associates’ clients’ pressures. We know that prompt and error-free services and meaningful advice must be provided at all times.

Unlike many firms, we charge a one-time fee for trademark registration and maintenance. Other than office actions, there are no additional fees during trademark prosecution (such as reporting notices of publication or the registration certificate). An upfront, all-in cost proposal enables our Associates to provide their clients with concrete price expectations.

For our current trademark fee schedule, please contact us.

Most international trademark attorneys know that, unlike the trademark opposition and cancellation procedures in other countries, the length of U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) proceedings are incredibly long. Therefore, it is difficult for international associates to tell their clients that the cost of opposing or canceling a U.S. trademark application or registration will prohibit the client from protecting its mark.

Jason Nardiello has represented dozens of clients in complex TTAB proceedings, including many of the world’s largest companies. Many of these proceedings were resolved in the client’s favor early in the case because we look for unpredicted strategies to prevent infringing marks from being registered. At other times, we use similar techniques to defend our clients’ registrations at the TTAB.

Because we have been representing clients in TTAB proceedings for years, we know how to predict costs in the proceedings, no matter the anticipated length. For this reason, we offer flat fees based on stages of the proceedings so that your client can easily predict their legal expenses over time.

We provide both trademark “knockout” searches and “comprehensive” trademark searches to determine if a mark can be registered and used. Unlike many individual trademark attorneys, because we both prosecute trademark applications and litigate trademark cases in federal court, we provide real-world advice on the potential infringement risks in adopting a particular mark.

For our current trademark fee schedule that includes our trademark search services, please contact us.

In addition to our trademark services, we provide copyright registration services to our international associate attorneys. Because we have experience obtaining copyright registrations for our clients, we can ensure that the particular work’s correct elements are protected. Additionally, we can minimize the number of additional information requests that the copyright examiners make to issue the registration as quickly as possible.

Owners of U.S. trademark registrations, even non-U.S. owners, can record their registration with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Registering a trademark registration is an effective way to stop infringing products from being released from U.S. commercial ports.

We cooperate with CBP officials and use various CBP complaint procedures to notify CBP of potential infringement threats to our clients and seize and destroy infringing goods if necessary. Typically, these procedures are much less costly than obtaining the same result through the federal court.

Recording a trademark registration at the CPB is inexpensive. Please contact us for our trademark fee schedule with our CPB costs.

We provide trademark and copyright litigation services around the U.S. Our experiences tell us that many international clients are not willing to subject themselves to the highly intrusive and expensive U.S. litigation process. Because of this, we seek to resolve most trademark disputes without resorting to this solution.

However, we are accustomed to litigating a trademark dispute concurrently at the TTAB and in federal court. We know how to use these proceedings together to bring cases to a swift end. If you believe your client has a trademark infringement issue, please read more on our Intellectual Property Litigation services page. Please contact us if you have a problem you would like to discuss.