Our benefits for you are:

* Fast applications

* Range of options

* Pay for what you need from us – whole or partial service options

* 24/7/365 availability for all applications

* Affordable fees

* Insured Service

* Friendly and knowledgeable advisors

* UK, EU and USA Trademark services in one place.

* Free UK Trademark Search

Phone 01244 300413

Email Trademark@lawhound.co.uk

Easy Option One- UK Trademarks Only

(Trademark Hound can also register Trademarks in UK, EU, USA and in individual countries).

BASIC PROCEDURE

Step 1 – Initial Consideration and Search

* We examine what is to be trademarked and what your aims are including what you hope to achieve by obtaining a trademark

* Search for other similar Trademarks in UK.

Step 2 – Pre- Application

* Checklist of criteria including common mistakes are applied to your application and we advise on any adjustments needed in the brand you wish to trademark.

Step 3 Completing Application

* Complex forms are completed on line for you

* Registration fees are payable to the registering bodies we tell you when these are needed ( they are additionally payable to Trademark Hounds’ legal fees)

Step 4 Dealing with Objections

* If any queries are raised by the Examiner, we let you know how to deal with them and quote any additional costs.

Step 5 Dealing with Oppositions

* If raised following advertisement we deal with these for you as an additional service – note- the incidence level is very low as we will have prepared you for potential objections when we carry out the search.

Step 6 Finalising Process

* Submission on line and advising you of updates throughout the process via email.

COSTS FOR ONE CLASS Trademark Hound 2012

1 OUR SEARCH FEES ( if you choose just to buy our search service)

Each search – £250 for a stand alone search with each additional search costing £175

2 OUR LEGAL FEES FOR SEARCH APPLICATION AND REGISTRATION – Steps 2, 3 and 6- Search, application and submission for application in up to 6 classes. Note IPO fees are separate charges to our fees.

UK – £425

3 OUR FEES FOR each ADDITIONAL CLASS IN EXCESS OF 6 CLASSES- £175

4 PLUS APPLICATION AND REGISTRATION FEES

Please note that we have listed approximate guidelines only below. Due to variations of fees and exchange rates etc, if you wish to proceed we will provide you with an exact amount to be paid 7 days prior to the fees being required.

UK – £200 application includes one class only & extra £50 for each class (currently 45 classes) ( payable on line at time of submission- we advise you the time to pay these)

EU As well as our successful UK trademark service we also provide EU or Community Mark services. Our costs are fixed and transparent:

Our costs are as follows for an EU Trademark:

Text Only Application including full search and application for one class £ 725 ex VAT

Each additional class £50 ex VAT

To include or make an application for a logo add £100 ex VAT

All services above are dealt with on a 7 day turnaround service.

Express Service?

If same day service is required add an additional £450 ex VAT. Please note the additional fast tracking payment does not affect the time taken by the OHIM or IPO in processing or advertising the application.

The fees payable online are currently 900 Euros for up to 3 classes on application and 150 euros for each additional class, these registration fees are payable in addition to our own application and advice fees.

For more information phone us on 01244 300413

Fixed Cost  USA Trademarks

Our fixed cost search and application service for all USA trademarks is £650 ex VAT. This covers the search, and application for 2 classes. Each additional class applied for is charged at the rate of £100 ex VAT. In addition the registration fees apply and these will vary depending on the number of classes you apply for, they currently start from £325.

Express service needed?

Standard costs above are for a 4 day turnaround, if you require a same day application then add a further £750 ex VAT to the costs above (excluding the registration fees).

There are 3 ways to file a trademark application in the USA and we take you through the process and explain it thoroughly to you.

Trademarks

When you are considering your application you need to decide on which classes apply to your business, we can help and provide this in depth service to ensure your application is correct at the time of application and future-proof as far as is possible.

Further class information here

1 – Choosing your Trade Mark

What sort of trade mark do you want to register? Make sure it is not misleading or just a description of what you do.

2 - The legal bits

1994 Trade Marks Act applies:

“a trade mark is any sign capable of being represented graphically which is capable of distinguishing goods or services of one undertaking from those of other undertakings”.

In plain English it means a mark in writing or a drawing which is unique.

3 – Have you got class?

Which classes of goods or services do you wish to register your trade mark for?  There are 45 to choose from: 1-34 cover goods and 35-45 cover services.

4 – Searches

With Trademark Hound you get a free UK trademark search, which will check that no one has a similar trade mark for your goods and services in the UK. We also offer searches for similar unregistered marks and businesses and the European Community Trade Mark Registers in our full service search. This establishes if somebody else has registered or applied to register the same or similar trade mark you want.

5 – Filing

Once accepted as your trade mark will be published in the Trade Marks Journal.  After that we wait during the three-month period during which oppositions may be filed, sometimes on the grounds of a prior conflicting right, or on the grounds that the mark is descriptive.  If there are no oppositions, your trade mark is formally registered and your business receives a certificate to this effect.  Your registration is for ten years.

With Trademark Hound Fast you get the option on turning your application around in one week or same day service, you can choose a complex indepth search or a free search to show the main areas of concern. You can obtain help from us using our DIY help service or we can handle the whole process for you and communicate on your behalf with the IPO.

Phone  01244 300413

Email  Trademarks@lawhound.co.uk

Should you consider Trademarking?

Trademarking is the legal process of registering exclusive rights to use a logo or ‘mark’ and enables you to use the ® symbol. It’s the unique identification of your services and/or products. Without registration you can only use the initials TM and have more limited choices to tackle any copiers of your logo or mark. A trademark over time can become an asset of your business and is entered onto your balance sheet as such.

What can you Trademark?
A Trademark covers a word, phrase, name, symbol, logo, images and pictures, or design or a combination of them. It also covers non-traditional/non-conventional things such as colours, smells, sounds, 3D forms or a combination of any of them. Provided it can be graphically registered and can be used as a distinguishing mark, then it can probably be trademarked.

What is the value of registering a Trademark?
Registering your Trademark means there is no doubt as to ownership, age/date of registration etc. A trademark can also be insured with some insurance brokers to protect it, just like any other sort of asset.

Without registration you still have a common law right to protect your mark but this is limited. For example, you may only be able to take action where your mark is used and confuses a buyer that they are buying your goods and/or services. Many businesses consider it an investment against future hassle, theft and larger legal bills in taking a common law action.

Trademarks also assist in counterfeiting cases which is particularly relevant if your branding grows as infringing trademarks by counterfeiting is also a criminal offence.

Is there a benefit in incurring the cost of registering a Trademark?
There are distinct benefits to registration, not only from the search process and protective as above, but since a Trademark IP is a commodity of value, it will normally have an element of goodwill and so can be sold etc.

Before proceeding with an International Trademark you do need to at least have a Trademark pending in UK and/or EU.

Talk to us on 01244 300413 about the right time for your business to register a trademark.

Email to Trademark@lawhound.co.uk

UK Trademarks TEXT only including search fees

Our Fees

Application in one class £395
Application in two classes £425
Applications in three classes £475
Applications in four classes £500
Applications in five classes £525
Each additional class £35
For Logo applications add £125

Same Day Express Fees
For same day trademark applications add £150 to charges above. Please note the turnaround times apply to our speed in making the application and not the IPO processing times which may vary.

All charges above are additional fees payable to the IPO which are registration fees which vary according to the type of application you make and are due in addition to the submission and any search fees above. Once your application is available on line and ready for submission the log in details are sent to you for payment directly to the IPO.

Payments to the IPO can currently be made by debit or credit card on line.

Note, a free initial search for UK trademarks is available from us just contact us below :

Phone 01244 300413 Email Trademark@lawhound.co.uk

There are some things you can do to make your application a little easier:
• Invest in an in depth legal search before embarking on your trademark application. We provide UK trademark searches free of charge and for EU and USA searches we charge £165 for this service.
• Consider whether any other business is already using your chosen trademark name, or has something similar to your choice in use already. These sorts of complications, once you have started your application process, can hold up your application, but at worst, place you in the position where you have to withdraw your application as it infringes another’s trademark rights.
• Consider from day one of your application the range of uses your trademark will cover, these are known as classes and often a DIY application will omit certain classes, to save money on the fees or due to lack of information of their importance in the initial application.
• Remember the IPO cannot advise you on the merits of your trademark or on any legal aspects to the process, the IPO are very helpful, but will not assist in legal issues.
• With Trademarks Fast you can opt for as much or as little help as you need.
For help on your application and to access legal help to assist you, email Trademarks@lawhound.co.uk or Phone 01244 300413

Our approach provides practical, clear and easy to follow steps so your business copes with and understands its obligations under employment law from recruitment through to dismissal. We provide an easy to use manual which you can download after the course via our secure delegate area with refresher notes to help you when you arrive back at your desk.

All our courses come with a free one month’s access to our Employment Law and HR help line. We run the courses in groups of 8-10 only for the full day interactive course so everyone gets the chance to talk about matters affecting them and to work on real time solutions. The half day is run as a seminar.

With costs starting from just £50 per delegate for the half day course talk to us about your in house training needs on 01244 300413

Another local solicitors’ firm closed failed to reopen after Christmas, with another 12 jobs disappearing. In the last 3 years we have seen many small solicitors’ practices either merge, with very mixed results, with other small practices and some go completely and very fast.

When I was studying law back in the late 1980′s my future was mapped out clearly, training contracts were available with clear career paths. Bright candidates were much sought after and attracted a higher salary.

Now, many large firms have closed the doors on training contracts or expect those hoping to qualify to undergo days of rigorous interviews, resulting in a paralegal position ‘leading to a possible training contract’ some 6 or 12 months later. Each job has hundreds of candidates forwarding CVs.

For me the legal profession is long overdue a radical improvement, Tesco Law is looming large but the erosion of the legal profession away from solicitors’ practices into other models happened years ago.

Consumers have always wanted easy to understand and available law when they need it, at a price they could afford. Will writers, online divorce services, debt advisors, business law consultancies and employment law providers grew up to satisfy a need.

All taking a market share. Aarh, yes those wise solicitors said, ‘ but these other providers are not regulated, let’s lobby for regulation’. Very few looked at why their client base wanted another model, one that put them as the customer first and did what they wanted it to.

One leading employment law provider has grown to be a National business turning over millions of pounds. A canny business operation, but one which would have never been able to commence at all, had solicitors been the natural and preferred choice.

Now HR and employment law are seen as necessary evils, advice needs to be provided fast, accurately and at a cost all can afford at the point of need. Red tape is not going anywhere and 2012 seems to have as much planned as usual.

Businesses talk to us about all their legal problems, problems which would once have come to us in our previous jobs as High Street solicitors, and just want those problems resolved. Time for law firms to come out fighting, or is it already too late? I have not met a single one so far who thinks there is a problem that requires radical action or is actually doing anything about it. I live in hope for their sake, there is a still a market for solicitor firm law but its smaller than it was and companies like ours erode it daily.

Managing staff with HR Hound
When do we start the disciplinary process or, is it better, to keep on talking informally?

It really does depend on the nature of the problem and the factors affecting an employee’s behaviour. For example, an employee who has had an excellent track record in time keeping and attendance suddenly starts being late. It would be a very harsh employer who starts off the process of discipline without trying to resolve the issue informally by chatting it through first.

Managing poor behaviour does not have to result in managing out of the door, but a clear message on what is acceptable and what will be dealt with formally helps your business and its employees to have clear guidelines that all can follow. Any form of informal management should have a clear plan attached to it so both sides know where they are, don’t be tempted to think an informal chat by a manager doing all the talking and the employee nodding will result in any changes at all!

What does need to be clear is the following:

* The boundaries of informal discussions and ensuring that an informal chat and agreement for action is documented so the employee knows and understands clearly they are not in disciplinary proceedings but are expected to change.
* If the matter has to proceed to disciplinary process that the correct process ( your documented disciplinary and grievance policy) is adhered to without exception.
* Those involved are properly trained to carry out the processes, its no good blaming the manager if the process is mishandled because they do not understand their obligations.
* Use HR advice early, don’t muddle through the process without getting advice on time either by phone or in writing.

Call us now on 01244 300413

Dismissing a member of staff is never an easy decision to take. Whatever you decide you must follow the correct legal procedures. HR Hound will guide you through each stage and help you avoid costly mistakes.

Making the decision to dismiss someone because of disciplinary or performance issues – and not redundancy – is a serious undertaking. You must have adequate grounds for the staff dismissal and make sure the whole process is dealt with properly.

Most dismissals will be as a result of a pattern of behaviour, and the offender must know this. Clear warnings are essential and should be documented on the employee’s record. ‘You’re late!’ can only be regarded as an observation of someone’s timekeeping, not a warning that improvements must be made.

Other common reasons for staff dismissal:-

Performance – the reasons have to be properly dealt with before staff dismissal can take place. We’ll guide you through the procedure for this.

Capability – where the employee has neither the skills nor the aptitude for the role. It may also mean that they may have misrepresented themselves at the recruitment stage, or that that they’ve been poorly recruited or trained.

Capability may also refer to their inability attend work regularly and prolonged or repeated illness may give you grounds for staff dismissal.

The staff dismissal must be managed in accordance with the organisation’s documented procedures, and the procedures must comply with legislation. If you deviate from them you may find yourself facing an unfair dismissal claim.

Making a job role redundant instead of dealing with the performance of the person occupying the role, to avoid any confrontation, is also likely to land your business in legal hot water.

Take advice early before action is implemented so you business doesn’t face high costs in defending an untenable position.

Call us on 01244 300413