1. THE PARTIES / EFFECTIVE DATE. This Engagement Agreement (“Agreement”) confirms the terms and conditions under which The Law Office of Michael E. Kondoudis P.C. (“Attorney”) will perform legal services for you (“Client”). It also sets forth the mutual responsibilities of Attorney and Client (collectively “Parties”) associated with that representation.

2. LEGAL SERVICES PROVIDED / SCOPE OF REPRESENTATION. The legal services to be provided by Attorney to Client under this Agreement are:

• the completion of an intensive Federal trademark search;
• consultation time of up to thirty (30) minutes regarding the search results;
• preparation and filing of one new Federal trademark application;
• continued legal representation at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”);
• receiving and forwarding to Client official communications from the USPTO;
• monitoring the progress of Client’s trademark application during its pendency at the USPTO;
• responding to any non-substantive Office Actions issued by the USPTO which require ten (10) minutes of time or less to answer;
• receiving and forwarding the official registration certificate; and
• docketing and reminding Client of due dates for the renewal of all Federal registration(s) resulting from Client’s trademark application.

(collectively “Legal Services”).

3. FLAT FEE. The fee for the Legal Services described above is $1395.00 USD (the “Flat Fee”). Rules of professional conduct for attorneys in the District of Columbia in various other States require that unearned fees advanced by clients to attorneys be kept in a separate “trust” account until those fees are earned and/or the representation is terminated by either party. This is because funds held in a trust account are generally protected from a law firm’s creditors and cannot be spent until earned. For these reasons, funds held in a trust account are more readily available to be refunded to clients. However, clients may waive this requirement. Due to the relatively small Flat Fee described above and Client’s desire to file Client’s trademark application as quickly as is reasonably possible, Client hereby waives the requirement and consents to the deposit of the Flat Fee directly into The Law Office of Michael E. Kondoudis P.C.’s operating account. By waiving this requirement, the advanced payment becomes property of The Law Office of Michael E. Kondoudis P.C. upon receipt. The Legal Services shall be deemed completed and the Flat Fee is earned when Attorney provides the trademark search results and completed trademark application to Client. Client may be entitled to a partial refund if the Client terminates this Agreement prior to the Flat Fee being earned.

4. COSTS AND EXPENSES. Every Federal trademark application must be accompanied by a U.S. Government filing fee(s). These Government fees are in addition to Flat Fee described above. The US Government fee for a new Federal trademark application is usually $350 per international class of goods and/or services.

5. RESPONSIBILITIES OF ATTORNEY AND CLIENT. Attorney will at all times act on Client’s behalf to the best of Attorney’s ability, subject to Attorney’s duties of professional responsibility. Also, Attorney will perform the Legal Services, keep Client informed of progress and developments, and respond promptly to Client’s inquiries and communications. To facilitate timely communication, Client agrees that (1) Attorney may communicate with Client by electronic mail on an unencrypted basis and (2) electronic mail will be Attorney’s primary mode of communication – when appropriate.

Client will cooperate with Attorney, be available as requested by Attorney, provide necessary information, promptly pay all fees and costs, and keep Attorney informed of Client’s contact information at all times. Also, Client agrees that to achieve the best possible representation and result, Client will need to read Attorney’s communications with care, and invest the level of attention commensurate with complex Federal legal matters, such as Federal trademarking.

6. NO GUARANTEE OF RESULT. Attorney will use his best efforts as described above. Still, it is important to understand that Attorney cannot assure Client of a successful final outcome. In fact, no one can guarantee that the USPTO will grant Client’s trademark application. A professionally prepared and filed application, like all applications, will undergo substantive legal and technical examination, which can be uneven in quality and subjective in some ways, including search strategy. The USPTO may ultimately reject your application for Federal trademark registration despite Attorney’s best efforts and even in the absence of any legal or technical defect. Client understands that this is an application process, and not all trademark applications are approved. Client’s trademark application may not be granted.

7. TERMINATION. Both of the Parties may terminate this Agreement at any time, with or without cause, by providing reasonable notice to the other party.

If such termination occurs, papers and property which you have provided to us will be returned to you promptly upon receipt of payment for outstanding fees and costs, and upon your written request. We reserve the right to destroy or otherwise dispose of any documents or other materials retained by us within a reasonable time after the termination of the Agreement. Client agrees that termination will not affect Client’s responsibility for prompt payment of Attorney’s invoices incurred before termination and in connection with an orderly transition of Client’s trademark application.

After completion of the Legal Services, changes may occur in the applicable laws or regulations that could have an impact upon Client’s future rights and liabilities. Unless Client engages Attorney to provide additional advice on issues arising from the Legal Services, Attorney will have no continuing obligation to advise Client with respect to future legal developments.

8. EXAMINATION / SUBSTANTIVE OFFICE ACTIONS. In some applications, during the examination process, the USPTO may issue one or more Office Actions imposing additional requirements and/or requesting additional information. The Legal Services described above do not include responding to substantive, complex, and/or lengthy Office Actions, for example. That additional work, which would be performed at Client’s request, would be subject to separate billing and may require the payment of additional U.S. Government fee(s). Attorney will, however, consult with Client at no charge to develop a response strategy for any substantive, complex, and/or lengthy Office Actions that the USPTO may issue.

9. APPLICATIONS BASED IN WHOLE OR IN PART ON A “BONA FIDE” INTENT TO USE. The USPTO encourages Applicants to file for Federal trademark protection as early as possible – even before use – when an Applicant has a “bona fide” intent to use a trademark. This filing option defers the requirement to show actual use until after filing. Similarly, during examination, it is sometimes advantageous to rely on a “bona fide” intent to use a trademark so as to defer a requirement for additional/different evidence of use. In either scenario, the requirement to show actual use is a statutory requirement that must be satisfied before the USPTO will issue an official registration certificate. Accordingly, if any portion of Client’s application is based on your bona fide intent to use, then the application mark will only register after: (1) Client begins using the mark in commerce; and (2) evidence of that use if submitted and accepted by the USPTO. The Legal Services described above do not include the submission of evidence of use after filing of Client’s trademark application. That additional work, which would be performed at Client’s request, would be subject to separate billing and may require the payment of additional U.S. Government fee(s).

10. BILLING AND TERMS FOR ADDITIONAL LEGAL SERVICES. Attorney is a full-service trademark and patent law firm that offers trademark services beyond the Legal Services described above. For work requested by Client outside of the Legal Services described above, Attorney may bill Client on a regular basis, normally at the end of each transaction, or by the end of each month, for both fees and disbursements. Payment is due upon receipt. Payment is not contingent or dependent upon the outcome of the representation.

11. RIGHT TO ARBITRATE. While this Agreement is intended to prevent any confusion of the terms of our representation, should a fee dispute arise you agree, pursuant to this paragraph, to submit any fee dispute between us to arbitration with the D.C. Bar Attorney/Client Arbitration Board (ACAB). You understand that you have the right to use other court forums to address fee disputes, but we are both agreeable to compromising those rights to submit to binding arbitration. Any decision made by the arbitration panel, whether for you or me, will be final. It has the same effect and enforceability as if rendered by a court of law. The arbitration panel would hear us in the District of Columbia.

The District of Columbia Bar ACAB Panel would be composed of both attorneys and laypersons. The D.C. Bar ACAB selects the panel from among a list of volunteers who have agreed to hear fee disputes. There are no costs associated with this arbitration, save minimal administration costs.

12. ENTIRE AGREEMENT / SEVERABILITY. This Agreement contains the entire agreement between the Parties. No other agreement, statement, representation 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 by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction, in whole or in part, to be unenforceable for any reason, the remainder of that provision and of this Agreement will be severable and remain in effect.

13. FORM OF SIGNATURES. This Agreement may be executed by the parties in electronic counterparts.