Trademark Clearance and Filing, Handled by an Attorney
I run the clearance search myself, give you a written registrability opinion, and file your USPTO application under the right basis. Not a filing mill that fills in a form: a California-licensed attorney who reads the file.
Prepared and handled personally by Sergei Tokmakov, Esq., California Bar #279869, licensed since 2011.
Ask my AI Legal Analyst before you buy
Tell me your proposed mark and what you sell, and I will tell you which package fits: clearance and filing, an office action response, or a renewal. This chat gives general information instantly. The paid packages are where I run the actual search and file with the USPTO. AI-generated legal information, not legal advice.
My attorney fee is $1,950 flat for the Trademark Clearance + Filing package, one mark, one class, or $3,500 flat for the Trademark Workroom Bundle if you want that same work delivered through a private client workroom. Separately, the USPTO charges its own government fee, currently $350 per class under the standard electronic filing fee schedule, billed to you at cost with no markup. Additional classes, office action responses, renewals, and international filing are separate packages.
A knockout screen plus a full clearance search across the USPTO register, common-law use, and business names. A written registrability opinion in plain English. A one-class TEAS application I draft and file myself. Non-substantive office-action responses included. USPTO fees are separate, billed at cost.
The same legal work as the $1,950 package, knockout screen, full clearance search, written registrability opinion, and one-class TEAS filing, delivered end to end through a private client workroom: one managed space for documents, drafts, and status instead of a scattered email thread. A word mark plus logo brand-pair workroom is $4,750. Also credited: the standalone $1,250 Clearance Opinion applies toward the $1,950 package (not the bundle) if you proceed within 30 days.
Most applications get at least one, so it is normal. Non-substantive office actions (classification, disclaimers, a missing signature) are included in the $1,950 filing package. A substantive refusal, most often a Section 2(d) confusion refusal or a Section 2(e) descriptiveness refusal, is the separate $1,200 Substantive Office Action Response package: an argument brief plus the evidence to support it.
In most cases yes, and if you are foreign-domiciled, USPTO rules require you to use a US-licensed attorney. I am admitted to practice before the USPTO in trademark matters under 37 C.F.R. section 11.14. Send me your mark, your goods or services, and your country of domicile, and I will confirm the right basis.
The four packages
Most matters start with clearance and filing, either as the standalone entry package or the full-service Workroom Bundle. If the USPTO later issues a substantive refusal, or your registration is coming up on a renewal window, those are separate flat-fee packages so you only pay for the stage you are actually in.
Trademark Clearance + Filing
- Knockout screen plus full clearance search: USPTO register, common-law use, and business names
- Written registrability opinion in plain English before you commit
- One-class TEAS application drafted and filed by me, under the correct basis
- Non-substantive office-action responses included
- USPTO government fees separate, billed at cost
Subject to conflict and clearance-search results; final scope confirmed in writing.
Trademark Workroom Bundle
- Everything in Trademark Clearance + Filing: knockout screen, full clearance search, written registrability opinion, one-class TEAS application drafted and filed, non-substantive office-action responses included
- Clearance and filing handled together, end to end, in one managed private client workroom instead of a scattered email thread
- Word mark plus logo brand-pair workroom available for $4,750 (USPTO fees at cost for one class each)
- USPTO government fees separate, billed at cost
Subject to conflict and clearance-search results; final scope confirmed in writing.
Substantive Office Action Response
- Response to a Section 2(d) ? likelihood-of-confusion refusal, or a Section 2(e) descriptiveness refusal
- Full argument brief addressing the examiner's specific reasoning
- Evidence assembly to support the argument
- USPTO fees for the response itself, if any apply, separate and billed at cost
Subject to conflict and clearance-search results; final scope confirmed in writing.
Renewal + Incontestability
- Section 8 declaration of continued use and Section 9 renewal
- Section 15 incontestability declaration, where eligible
- Specimen review before filing
- USPTO government fees separate, billed at cost
Subject to conflict and clearance-search results; final scope confirmed in writing.
Additional classes, TTAB extensions or oppositions, and portfolio work do not fit a flat four-tier menu. I quote those separately once I understand the matter.
Email me about a larger matterWant the search and opinion only, before you decide on filing? See the $1,250 Clearance Opinion, credited toward the $1,950 Trademark Clearance + Filing package above if you proceed within 30 days.
A trademark filing mill fills in a form and submits it. I read the file. The USPTO filing form itself is not the hard part of getting a trademark registered; the hard part is everything the form does not warn you about.
Search quality
A cheap or free search tool usually checks one thing: exact or near-exact matches already on the federal USPTO register. That misses two categories of real risk. Common-law marks, meaning businesses actually using a similar name or logo in commerce without ever having filed federally, can still block your registration or bring an infringement claim. State business name and DBA filings are a second signal a shallow search skips entirely. My clearance search runs across all three: the federal register, common-law use, and business name registries, because a conflict in any of them can derail an application or a launch.
Most applications do not sail through on the first try. The USPTO's own Trademarks Dashboard tracks the percentage of applications approved on first action with no refusal at all, and that share is a minority. Put plainly: more than half of all applications draw at least one office action, whether a minor informality or a substantive refusal, before they can register. An application that gets an office action is not a failed application. An application that gets the office action answered wrong, or answered late, can become one.
Response strategy
Filing is the easy part. Whether your application survives depends on how an office action gets answered, and the two most common substantive refusals, a Section 2(d) likelihood-of-confusion refusal and a Section 2(e) descriptiveness refusal, both require a real legal argument, not a form response. A weak or generic reply to either one can end the application. That is why non-substantive office actions (informalities, classification, a disclaimer request) are included in my $1,950 filing fee, while a substantive refusal is scoped separately as the $1,200 response package, an argument brief built around your specific facts and the examiner's specific reasoning.
USPTO government fees are never blended into my attorney fee. The USPTO's base application fee is $350 per class under the current USPTO fee schedule (verified July 2026), plus any surcharges that apply to your specific filing. I bill USPTO fees to you at cost, with no markup, and always show the two numbers separately.
If your brand assets came from an AI tool
If you used an AI image or naming tool to generate your logo, tagline, or brand name, ownership of that output is not automatic or uniform across tools, and it is worth knowing where you stand before you file a federal application built around it. I cover ownership of AI-generated content on my AI output rights hub.
Intake
You send your proposed mark (word, logo, or both), the goods or services you sell or plan to sell, and whether you are already using the mark in commerce.
Search
A knockout screen for obvious conflicts, then a full clearance search: the USPTO register, common-law use, and business name registries.
Opinion
A written registrability opinion in plain English: what I found, how serious any conflict is, and whether I recommend filing, narrowing the description, or picking a different mark.
File
I draft and file your TEAS application under the correct basis, use in commerce or intent to use, with a specimen and identification built to hold up under examination.
Monitor / respond
I track the file through the USPTO. Non-substantive office actions are handled inside the flat fee. A substantive refusal gets flagged and scoped as the separate response package.
Turnaround on my side: searches and filings move within two business days of a completed intake. The USPTO's own examination timeline runs longer and is outside any attorney's control, commonly several months to a first office action and close to a year or more to registration.
US founders naming a company or product
You want to know the name is actually available before you build a brand, a website, and marketing around it, not after. The clearance search and registrability opinion answer that question before you file.
E-commerce and Amazon sellers
Amazon Brand Registry, and enforcement against counterfeit listings and hijacked buy boxes, both generally require a registered trademark, not just a pending application.
Foreign-domiciled applicants
USPTO rule requires every applicant whose domicile is outside the United States to be represented by an attorney licensed to practice law in a US state. I am admitted to practice before the USPTO in trademark matters under 37 C.F.R. section 11.14 ?, which allows any attorney in good standing with a US state bar to handle trademark filings nationwide.
If you are also forming the company itself, bringing on a co-founder, or getting ready for an investor round, the trademark search and filing pair naturally with getting the underlying entity, equity, and IP-assignment paperwork right. See my founder formation and investor-readiness packages.
Included
- Knockout screen plus full clearance search across the USPTO register, common-law use, and business name registries
- Written registrability opinion in plain English
- One-class TEAS application, drafted and filed by me, under the correct Section 1(a) or 1(b) basis
- Non-substantive office-action responses (classification, disclaimers, missing signatures, and similar informalities)
- USPTO government fees separate, billed at cost, currently $350 per class base application fee
Included
- Everything in Trademark Clearance + Filing: knockout screen, full clearance search, written registrability opinion, one-class TEAS application drafted and filed under the correct basis, non-substantive office-action responses
- Delivered end to end through a private client workroom: one managed space for documents, drafts, and status instead of a scattered email thread
- USPTO government fees separate, billed at cost, currently $350 per class base application fee
Included
- Response to a Section 2(d) likelihood-of-confusion refusal or a Section 2(e) descriptiveness refusal
- Argument brief addressing the examiner's specific reasoning
- Evidence assembly supporting the argument (for example third-party registration comparisons or evidence of distinctiveness, as applicable to your refusal)
Included
- Section 8 declaration of continued use, or combined Section 8 and Section 9 renewal
- Section 15 declaration of incontestability, where your registration is eligible
- Specimen review before filing to confirm it satisfies the USPTO's current-use requirement
- USPTO government fees separate, billed at cost
How much does a trademark cost all-in?
Two separate numbers make up the total cost, and I never blend them. My attorney fee for the Trademark Clearance + Filing package is $1,950 flat, for one mark in one class, or $3,500 flat for the Trademark Workroom Bundle if you want that same work delivered end to end through a private client workroom. Separately, the USPTO charges its own government filing fee, currently $350 per class under the standard electronic TEAS filing fee schedule, paid directly and billed to you at cost with no markup from me. If you want the search and opinion only before deciding on filing, the standalone Clearance Opinion is $1,250 and is credited toward the $1,950 package if you proceed within 30 days. Additional classes, a Section 2(d) or 2(e) office action response, renewals, or international filing are separate packages, quoted before any work begins.
What happens if I get an office action?
Most trademark applications get at least one office action before they register, so this is normal, not a sign your application failed. Non-substantive office actions, such as a classification fix, a disclaimer request, or a missing signature, are already included in the $1,950 filing package at no extra charge. If the USPTO issues a substantive refusal, most commonly a Section 2(d) likelihood-of-confusion refusal or a Section 2(e) descriptiveness refusal, that requires a real legal argument and is the separate $1,200 Substantive Office Action Response package: an argument brief addressing the examiner's reasoning plus the evidence to support it. Office actions generally must be answered within three months, with a paid three-month extension available, so timing matters.
Can you file for me if I am outside the US?
In most cases yes, and if you are a foreign-domiciled applicant, USPTO rules actually require you to be represented by an attorney licensed to practice law in the United States. I am admitted to practice before the USPTO in trademark matters under 37 C.F.R. section 11.14, which allows any attorney in good standing with a U.S. state bar to handle trademark filings nationwide. Send me your proposed mark, the goods or services you sell, and your country of domicile, and I will confirm the right filing basis and scope.
What is included in the $1,950 Trademark Clearance + Filing package?
A knockout screen plus a full clearance search across the USPTO register, common-law use, and business name registries. A written registrability opinion in plain English before you commit to filing. A one-class TEAS application that I draft and file myself, under the correct basis. Non-substantive office-action responses if the USPTO comes back with an informality. USPTO government fees are separate and billed at cost. Substantive refusals, additional classes, renewals, and disputes are separate packages. The same scope is also available as the $3,500 Trademark Workroom Bundle, delivered through a private client workroom.
What is the difference between the $1,950 package and the $3,500 Trademark Workroom Bundle?
The underlying legal work is the same: the knockout screen, full clearance search, written registrability opinion, and one-class TEAS filing. The $3,500 Trademark Workroom Bundle delivers that work end to end through a private client workroom, one managed space for documents, drafts, and status, instead of a scattered email thread. A word mark plus logo brand-pair workroom is $4,750. Both are flat fees, one mark, one class, with USPTO government fees separate and billed at cost.
How long does trademark registration take?
Filing itself moves fast: searches and filings move within two business days of a completed intake. The USPTO's own examination timeline is the longer variable and is outside any attorney's control. Expect several months to a first office action or approval, and a total timeline that commonly runs close to a year or more from filing to registration, longer if an office action or opposition comes up.
Do I need a lawyer, or can I file myself on the USPTO's website?
A US-domiciled applicant is allowed to file directly. The risk is usually not the filing form itself, it is what the form does not warn you about: a search that only checks exact federal matches and misses common-law and business-name conflicts, a specimen that does not actually satisfy the USPTO's use requirement, or a goods-and-services description that is broader or narrower than what actually protects your business. A filing mill fills in the form. I read the file.
What if the search finds a conflicting mark?
That is exactly what the clearance search and registrability opinion are for: finding this out before you spend a year and the USPTO fee on an application that gets refused. If I find a real conflict, I tell you honestly, including how serious it is, whether a narrower description of goods or services avoids it, and whether a different mark is the better call. That opinion is part of the $1,950 package, not an upsell after the fact.
Can you handle multiple classes, international filing, or an existing dispute?
Yes, those are scoped and quoted separately once I understand the matter. Additional classes on the same application, Madrid Protocol or other international filings, TTAB extensions of time or oppositions, and broader portfolio work do not fit a flat three-tier menu, so I quote them individually after reviewing the facts.
Ready to find out if your mark is registrable?
Pick a package, or ask the AI Legal Analyst first if you are not sure which one fits.