1. Attorney-Client
Relationship: A prospective
client is not considered to be part of our active client base until a fee
agreement (price quote) has been presented to the client, agreed upon by the
client, and an advance on fees and services received. Until that point, a prospective client is not considered an
active “client” of Robert Platt Bell and we are not responsible for a prospective
client’s legal matters. We do, however,
agree to keep in confidence, all confidential client information as defined
below. We reserve the right to refuse
any prospective client for any (legally permissible) reason whatsoever.
2. Docketing: We docket each
action in every ACTIVE case that is under our care. An ACTIVE case is defined as any Patent, Trademark, or Copyright
matter from the time the matter is taken on from an active client until the
Patent, Trademark, or Copyright matter is issued by the Patent & Trademark
Office or Library of Congress. We do
not docket post-issuance events (see below).
As we are assuming responsibility
for docketing matters in our care, we must insist on being the address of
record for all legal matters under our care.
For example, we will not prepare a Patent Application for a client to
file pro se, listing themselves as the point of contact, as we would
arguably be liable for matters not under our control. The only exception to this rule is that we do prepare
applications for Government Agencies and Corporations with competent in-house
legal staff and docketing systems. In
such circumstances, those entities assume complete responsibility for docketing
of such matters.
3. Reminder Letters: With each
communication from the Patent & Trademark Office and/or Library of
Congress, we send out an Instruction Letter at no charge to the client. In these Instruction Letters, we spell out
when due dates for responses to specific actions are due. In some instances, these due dates may be
based upon mailing date or issue date of other, attached documents. It is the client’s responsibility to
recognize these due dates and respond to us well in advance of those due dates. We cannot be constantly reminding clients
of their responsibilities and obligations.
Read these letters carefully!
We do NOT agree to send reminder letters, or reminder of reminder
letters, or follow up with phone calls to reminder letters, or send e-mails,
faxes, etc, etc. Such reminder letters,
calls, faxes, and e-mails consume an inordinate amount of our time and increase
our costs to our clients. We do not
charge for reporting matters for clients, but we report matters only once! Other law firms will send reminder after
reminder to clients, but charge for each reminder letter. The choice is yours to make. A $500 reminder letter is not efficient use
of your resources, in our opinion.
Moreover, we have learned that
excessive reminder letters serve only to train clients to expect 2, 3, or more
letters before a due date, and thus fail to respond to our initial
letters. It is the client’s
responsibility to maintain an active interest in their own legal matters and
respond promptly.
We are not responsible for any
application becoming abandoned or any issued Patent expiring where we have advised
the client of the existence of a response date or a maintenance fee response
date. It is the client’s responsibility
to provide us with instructions prior to those due dates. Similarly, we are not responsible for any
loss of patent rights due to failure to file before a bar date (or anniversary
date) which we have made the client aware of (or which the client is
aware). When we send a letter listing a
response date, carefully make note of that date. Subsequent reminders will NOT be sent.
If we do NOT receive a response
from a client, we will assume the client does not intend to respond to a matter
and wishes the application to go abandoned or lapse. It is the client’s obligation to maintain communications with
their attorney!
On occasion, we may send a
reminder letter or make a reminder phone call or e-mail as a courtesy to the
client. However, we do not guarantee to
do so. Moreover, by sending such a
reminder, we are not agreeing in the future to send reminders for future
time-sensitive events.
4. Extended Docketing: When a Patent,
Trademark, or Copyright matter issues, there may be Maintenance Fees,
Affidavits, renewals, or other events that may be due several years from the
issue date of that matter. We will
advise you of such long-term due dates upon issuance of the matter. However, we do not agree to docket these
matters and/or send reminders with regard to such matters.
The liability for docketing and
reminding clients of maintenance fees, for example, is too large, considering
the amount charged for payment of such maintenance fees. In many instances, clients, when reminded
of such fees, pay the fees themselves.
Thus, we incur a liability to remind the client, but are not even paid
for such risk-taking. This is not fair
to us, or our other clients. So we
refuse to take on such a responsibility and liability.
We cannot assume a 13 year
docketing liability unless paid in advance for such a service. We recommend that you either docket these
liabilities yourself, or hire a Annuity Company (e.g., Computer Patent
Annuities) to docket and pay such Maintenance Fees. Once a matter issues, our docketing responsibility and liability
ceases.
On occasion, we may send
reminders to clients, as a courtesy only, of such extended docketing matters. However, such reminders are not an agreement
to send subsequent reminders or any agreement to assume liability for payment
of maintenance fees or the like.
Note that it is also the client’s
responsibility to keep in touch with us with regard to address changes and the
like. Oftentimes, materials from the
Patent & Trademark Office are sent to us after a Patent issues. For example, a client decides to pay his own
maintenance fee to avoid our $150 fee for such a service. The USPTO sends us a receipt for such
payment. However, we cannot forward
such documents to the client without a current address. We ask that if you decide to take on such
tasks yourself that you file a change of address with the USPTO and keep us
apprised of your new address as well.
5. Confidential Client
Information: With all clients and potential clients, we agree to use best
efforts to keep confidential client information in confidence. However, we ask that clients disclose to us
only that information that is related to the Patent, Trademark, or Copyright
matter. We do not agree to keep in
confidence any publicly available information or information already known to
us.
In addition, we do not consider
the mere representation of a client to be a “confidence”. If you want to keep your representation a
secret, please find another attorney.
My name, as well as yours, will be printed on the face of any issued (or
published) Patent. Excessive secrecy
serves no purpose and also make me wary of representing such a client.
Since any Patent, Trademark, or
Copyright matter will eventually be published and disclosed to the public,
there is little need for extensive secrecy.
We prefer to avoid any unnecessary and heroic means of maintaining
secrecy, such as the use of encrypted files, non-disclosure agreements, or the
like. These unusual steps are
time-consuming and difficult. I will
refuse to represent any client who seems paranoid or otherwise overly
secretive. Rather then spend efforts on
maintaining secrecy, the client is better served by getting the Patent,
Trademark, or Copyright matter on file as soon as possible.
Sorry, but we will NOT sign
Non-Disclosure Agreements with clients.
It has been my experience that most clients requesting Non-Disclosure
Agreements are not compatible with my practice.
Note, however, that the whole
point of the Patent system is to disclose inventions to the public in
return for a limited monopoly. Thus, excessive secrecy goes against the
very nature of the Patent system.
6. Termination of
Representation: A client may terminate representation at any time, as is their
right under the law. All documents
relating to a client matter in our possession will be returned to the client or
forwarded to client’s new counsel (at client’s expense) or destroyed, whichever
is preferred by the client, provided client’s account has been brought up to
date.
Similarly, we reserve the right
to terminate representation of a client at any time, for any (legally
permissible) reason, including non-payment of fees for services and expenses,
as well as failure to adhere to these firm policies. All documents relating to a client matter in our possession will
be returned to the client or forwarded to client’s new counsel (at client’s
expense) or destroyed, whichever is preferred by the client, provided client’s
account has been brought up to date.
We also reserve the right to turn
away any client with whom we do not feel we will be compatible with our
practice. We will not represent any
client who asks us to perform services which are outside the scope of our
expertise or comfort level. We will not
represent a client who appears to be perpetrating a fraud or some other scheme. We will not represent those attempting to
obtain “submarine” Patent protection.
We will not represent any client who appears to be unreasonable,
incoherent, or not of sound mind or faculties.
We do not take overflow work.
7. Document Retention
and Destruction Policy: Maintaining files for 5, 10, or 20 years for
a cumulative client list is a daunting task, and requires an inordinate amount
of storage. In addition, responding to
document requests and other Discovery requirements in litigation consumes an
inordinate amount of our time – which cannot be billed to a client. For these and other reasons, we do not agree
to maintain client files indefinitely.
Copies of all documents from the
Patent & Trademark Office and/or the Library of Congress are sent to the
client. Thus, the client should be in
possession of all the elements of the client file we maintain. Moreover, these documents are also kept on
file by the Patent & Trademark Office and/or the Library of Congress
(whichever is applicable) and thus our file is redundant in that regard.
We do not maintain copies of
draft applications, draft responses, and the like and do not suggest the client
do likewise. See my article on File Wrapper Hygiene. When an Application issues as a Patent, for example, we usually
strip the file down to its bare essentials – the PTO prosecution file and a
limited amount of our correspondence.
Copies of Prior Art references and the like are usually discarded, along
with any notes, drafts, or the like. By
reducing file size, our file storage requirements are reduced.
Upon request, we will return a
file to a client, once the Patent has issued, at the client’s expense. Otherwise, we will either “strip” the file
and place it in long term storage, or destroy the file completely. In most, but not all, instances, we keep the
file for 3.5 years. If the client
contacts us to pay the maintenance fee, we usually keep the file until the next
maintenance fee is due. In other instances,
the file may be destroyed, particularly if more room is needed in our storage
facility. However, we do not agree
to keep any file for any minimum length of time and moreover we reserve the
right to destroy any file we feel is no longer of use. Our default mode of operation is to destroy
all non-active files whenever possible and practical.
We do not maintain files for
matters where an attorney-client relationship has not been established. At one point in time, we kept separate files
for each potential client. However,
this proved to be completely unworkable, as we get calls and inquiries from
hundreds of potential clients over the years.
Any notes, materials, letters, or the like from such potential clients are destroyed once it
becomes clear that the potential client will not become a client of the firm.
Please do not ask us to “save”
your materials while you consider pursuing the matter over an extended period
of time (months or years). We do not
have the storage space for such files.
We cannot assume the liability for such non-client matters. Moreover, delay in Patent (and other)
matters is often fatal and we do not want to encourage such delays.
8. Invoicing and Payment: We try to keep our
fees very reasonable and provide written price quotations for all
matters. As such, while we try to track
the number of hours spent on each matter, we do not spend the inordinate amount
of money and time needed to “track” billable hours. Spending an hour of attorney time to track 8 hours of attorney
time is not efficient (or enjoyable) use of attorney resources.
We agree to invoice each client no
more than the amount quoted on our written price quotations. If a matter takes less time and/or effort than initially planned, we will
invoice for a lesser amount, if appropriate.
Note that fixed cost items (PTO fees, postage, photocopying, etc.) are
billed at actual amounts, regardless of the price quote. Also, please read the price quote
carefully. There is an additional
charge of $150 for filing of miscellaneous papers and the like – which is
spelled out in the price quote.
Our fees are far below industry
norm. Most attorneys charge $10,000 to
$15,000 to prepare and file a Patent Application (not counting prosecution and
issue expenses). Our fees are far below
this. We can only keep our fees
low if we keep our overhead low. Thus,
we do ask that you pay all invoices promptly.
We also request a 50% advance on fees and services for new clients. For amounts less than $1000, we may require
a 100% advance. We accept Personal
Checks and Credit Cards (Mastercard and Visa) as well as PayPal.
We do appreciate that even at our
reduced fees that Patent expenses can be considerable. We will continue to represent a client so
long as at least a token payment is received, and the client keeps in touch
with us. For example, if a client owes
us $1000 in fees, but sends $100 to $200 a month, and keeps us informed as to
his intent to pay the amount due, we will continue to represent that client.
We provide our written price
quotation up-front so you will know how much the process will cost. There is no excuse for a client not to pay –
the expenses have been detailed well in advance. If you cannot afford the overall costs of the Patent process, do
not begin!
If a client does not pay an
amount owed, we will take steps to terminate representation, without warning or
notice. Sending Statements, making
reminder phone calls, and the like takes up an inordinate amount of attorney
time. One “deadbeat” client takes up
the labor of five good paying clients.
In addition, maintaining a client who does not pay is worse that having
no work to do at all. I’d rather be
golfing that doing work for a non-paying client. Golf is less expensive and more enjoyable.
It takes 3-6 months for the
Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) to process a Request to Withdraw as
Attorney of Record. In addition, the
PTO may not process such a request at all if a response is imminently
due in a matter. Thus, we are often
“over a barrel” if a client refuses to pay after several months and a response
to an Office Action is due.
Thus, if a client refuses to pay,
we will terminate representation immediately, without notice or explanation,
and without recourse. Once we have
filed papers to withdraw as Attorney of Record, we terminate our representation
of the client. Subsequent late payments
and apologies just don’t cut it. Such
clients have already wasted an inordinate amount of our time – at the expense
of our other, loyal paying clients.
So, just pay your bills on time,
and we’ll all get along just fine.
9. Work Processing: Please contact us well in advance of any due
dates or Patent needs. You are best
served in the Patent process by starting the process early. Waiting until the last minute is not
cost-effective and moreover can end up voiding your Patent rights.
We represent a broad range of
clients and as a small firm, we do not have an army of attorneys to handle work
as it comes in. For this reason, please
do not ask us to perform work out of turn, do “rush” jobs, or other special
services. I try to provide clients with
a realistic time-frame as to when work can be done, based upon current workload
and backlogs.
In the past, I have been asked to
take “rush” jobs, pushing aside work for existing clients, only to discover
that the client was not in a “rush” at all.
If you need something done in a hurry, please find another
attorney. As noted in our firm philosophy
page, the entire goal of my practice is to perform “quality, contemplative
work”.
I also note that in most cases,
clients requesting “rush” job work also want steep discounts and/or have no
intention of paying.
With regard to amendments and
other responses, these have to be handled in turn. Although it may be possible to respond to an Office Action in
your application today, I cannot put aside more pressing work if the
actual due date is not for two or three months. I cannot allow clients to manage my docket for me by making
special requests to take work out of turn.
10. Parachute Cases: If you are a pro se applicant or
filed your application through another law firm, please DO NOT ask us to take
over prosecution of your case when you get into trouble. We do NOT “parachute” into an existing case
that has already been filed by an inventor or another Attorney, except for existing
clients.
Historically, I have taken on a
number of such “parachute” cases and have had bad experiences with almost all
of them. To begin with, such clients
are my worst payers and often never pay their invoices. Not getting paid is worse than no work at
all, as I can certainly goof -off for free, whereas non-paying clients make me
pay for the privilege of working. Oftentimes
these clients are leaving their existing Attorney not because of quality or
other legitimate issues, but rather because they did not pay that Attorney.
In this business, there is an old
saying, “if a client comes to you unhappy with their present Attorney, chances
are they will be unhappy with you as well.”
I have found this old adage to be quite true. Most clients coming to me with horror stories about poor
representation are, in fact, concealing non-payment of their previous Attorney
as being the real reason they need new representation.
Many pro se inventors have
botched up their applications so badly that there is little I can do to fix
them properly. If I cannot “rescue” the
application, I take the blame. If I do
fix the case, I get none of the credit.
It is a lose/lose situation for me.
You would not ask a skilled
carpenter to come into your home to finish your half-completed and improperly
done home improvement projects. Why
would you, in effect, ask your Attorney to do the same?
If you are planning on filing an
application pro se and then retaining an attorney once you “need” one,
think again. If something is worth
Patenting, it is worth Patenting properly.
Hire a skilled Attorney or Agent from the get-go.
* * * *
These policies may sound harsh at
first. However, they are designed to
give my clients the best possible service at the lowest possible prices. I cannot provide top-notch service at the
best price, if I am reduced to the level of a clerk – sending reminder letters
and badgering clients for payment. An
hour spent with such mundane matters is as expensive as an hour spend writing
claims. Most clients need an attorney
for their legal expertise, not as a hand-holding nanny.
Similarly, I cannot provide the
best service at the lowest prices if clients are argumentative, disruptive,
slow to pay, have unrealistic expectations, or cause other problems. By eliminating the 10% “problem” clients who
take up 90% of the work effort, I can provide better and less expensive service
to the remainder of my clients.
Most “full-service” law firms
have a small army of clerks and paralegals (and an accounting department) who
will send you reminder letters, dun you for amounts owed, and maintain detailed
files in vast storage vaults. If this
is what you want from a lawyer, and you are willing to pay the inordinate
amount of money for such “services” then you should retain such a firm. If, however, you want only legal services –
and are willing to be an active participant in the process – then my firm
structure may work to your advantage.