At VeriTrademark, we strive for transparency and predictability in our fee structure. We bill at hourly rates only in the absence of a more client-friendly plan. Increasingly, many services are priced via “a la carte” flat fees or monthly flat fee retainers subject to mutually agreed upon parameters.

Our flat fees services are more than just form filling exercises – they all involve client interviews and customization based on client needs. Think of the forms as efficient information gathering mechanisms; I find that what people really need is often different than what they think they need, and important nuances often emerge when we talk.

Here are some examples of flat fee work and how we price other common services:

Business Formation Startup Packages: This includes a number of different documents and filings, and our base rate is $500 plus filing fees (which vary based on state) for a single-person entity, $1,000 for two founders, and $1,500 for more than two founders. In most cases we steer clients toward LLCs (sometimes with S Corp election as an option for taxes) but we also form Delaware C Corporations.

Employment Agreements, Independent Contractor Agreements and Consulting Agreements: Our base rate is $750 for a typical agreement, with adjustments for customized provisions such as non-disclosure provisions and arbitration provisions.

Trademark Registration: Our base rate is $1,500 for research and filing of a federal trademark in one trademark class. That drops if you don’t want research (which we don’t recommend in most cases) and includes the filing fee. Almost all ancillary trademark filings are also done on a flat fee basis.

Trademark Office Actions: Our base rate is $350 for responses to most procedural office actions and $1,200 for responses to most substantive office actions. Prices are subject to change based on complexity.

Trademark Monitoring: We charge $495 per mark per class per year to monitor the U.S. trademark database for potential problems that relate to your existing trademarks, with discounts for multiple marks.

Copyright Registrations: We charge $400 for a simple copyright application, with prices subject to increase based on complexity.

Terms Of Use, Privacy Policies, Employee Handbooks, Investor Documents, Non-compete Agreements: These are examples of services which are more difficult to offer flat fees as they involve more customization and complexity is more fact-specific.

The flat fees quoted above are estimates only – the usual caveats apply as every legal matter is unique and not everything is appropriate for a flat fee. To the extent that we can’t charge a flat fee or must bill hourly, we strive for simplicity and  transparency.

Many of these services can be ordered by filling out a web-based form which you can find under the “order flat fee services” tab on the main menu on the site.