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Our fee structure, as well as other details of our attorney-client relationship, will be described to you in a formal engagement letter. Some tasks may be billed based on a fixed fee (a single fee for a task independent of how long that task actually takes to accomplish), while other tasks may be billed based on an hourly rate.
It is common, for example, for us to bill a fixed fee to draft and file a new patent or trademark application, and to bill an hourly rate for the prosecution of the application before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. We use an hourly rate for the prosecution phase of the process since it is difficult to predict how that stage of the process will actually unfold. You will not be billed for anything, nor will we be responsible for your case, until we each sign the formal engagement letter. The initial consultation is free.