INVENTORY ATTORNEY
Florida Attorneys are required to designate an inventory attorney as per Rule 1-3.8(e). The only exceptions are for members not practicing in Florida and for any portion of the member’s practice as an employee of a governmental entity.
The intent is that clients need to be protected if one suddenly becomes incapable of practicing law due to accident or illness. Each year, The Florida Bar has to open inventory cases when a lawyer’s sudden unavailability jeopardizes clients. This happens a lot and the Florida Bar is tired of having to clean up this type of mess.
We are willing to act as inventory attorney, but we will require both $$ payment and also a lot of information about one's practice, docket, and pending tasks. This requires that the attorney regularly update us on all their various cases and filings. To learn more, click here.
Remember, an inventory attorney is a type of "nuclear button". Chances are, if an inventory attorney is brought in, the original attorney is either Dead, Incapacitated (e.g. Permanent Vegetative State (PVS), or has Dementia/Alzheimers (these are not the same) and is no longer able to look after their own interests.
As such, the information the Inventory Attorney needs is pretty harsh and dire. The Inventory needs all docket numbers and locations of all pending Actions. If you hire us for this task, we are going to ask for some information in this area, in advance, try to get to know something about your practice. But we will not ask very much. By the time the Inventory Attorneys get brought in, things are pretty bad and the original attorney is almost certain to be never practicing law again.
One good thing: our law firm is hugely better suited to being an Inventory attorney for a solo patent or trademark specialist. We know exactly where and how everything is buried inside of the US Patent and Trademark Office, far more and far better than a non-patent and non-trademark attorney.
OBTAINING LIABILITY INSURANCE FOR A SOLO
Many solo practitioners have difficulty purchasing liability insurance, partly because the policy requires that they designate a "backup attorney", who can step in during emergency, injury, incapacity, etc. We can help with that, and can sign the forms, but we will require both $$ payment and also a lot of information about one's practice, docket, and pending tasks. Further, the extent of our duties will be to close out the files where possible, and arrange for appointment of substitute counsel. If its necessary for us to take anything over, you can kiss those clients goodbye. You may be kissing the clients goodbye anyway. A solo attorney who misses deadlines will have difficulty getting new clients, regardless of their reasons for missing.
As an insurance co-signer, we would operate as a type of safety net, but in general will not operate to make pleadings or file documents (except for patent/trademark issues). Instead, we would hustle to find substitute counsel as quickly as possible, notify all clients to the extent possible, and get the client to sign the necessary forms, and pay all the new attorneys retainer, to change the designed counsel on any particular action.
We operate as a safety net only, and operate mainly as an emergency mechanism. In this capacity, we are unlikely to make any pleadings or file any documents.
To learn more, click here. Do not hire anyone to sign this important form until you know a bit more about them, and how and whether they will be effective in a time of crisis for your law firm. This is a tricky area to briefly explain.
PATENT/TRADEMARK DOCKETING
We may be among the most astute and knowledgeable docketing persons in existence, regarding both patent and trademark issues. With 23 years experience in these fields, we have encountered a lot of different types of patent and trademark deadlines, and are very familiar with the various pendency requirements and processes for filing extensions. We also don't rely strictly on any typical patent/trademark docketing software package, but instead know how to go behind the software and make sure that any anomalies or blems are taken care of and addressed.
Law firms often purchase docketing software, and this can be helpful, but like with many situation, the docketing software can go screwy, not work well, or be improperly loaded or installed. Further, such software can be working properly, but have invalid data entered. Understanding patent and trademark deadlines is difficult, and there are also many different word-usages and trade-jargon that make the process even harder to understand. Its best to have a human reviewer to supervise and oversee the docketing processes, regardless of any software presence. Further, a typical law-firm liability insurer will not accept the excuse "the errors were not our fault, our docketing software did not properly warn us".
Regarding patents, for us to best help you, we prefer that you send us a monthly XML download of your Private PAIR account within EFS. We can then regularly sort and parse the XML file and forecast the various deadlines contained therein. To learn more, click here.
LAW FIRM SUPPORT
There is a way to combine all 3 of the above, as they have some intersection and overlap. Or, combine 2 of the 3. As the law firm business model changes, and more and more people act in a solo capacity, there will be more and more demand for these type of services.
If your law firm is going to hire an inventory attorney, and you provide patent and/or trademark services, we might make a better inventory attorney than other competitors.
THIRD PARTY IDS
These are a great way to attack your business competitors, but unfortunately, many small and medium-sized businesses don't know how to take proper advantage of this.
The US Patent Office started offering this feature around 2014, and somewhat modeled it after the Trademark process known as "opposition", with some significant differences of course.
THIRD PARTY SUBJECT MATTER NOTIFICATIONS
These are a great way to attack your business competitors, but unfortunately, many small and medium-sized businesses don't know how to take proper advantage of this.
Again, the US Patent Office started offering this feature around 2014, and somewhat modeled it after the Trademark process known as "watch lists", with some significant differences of course.
TM OPPOSITIONS
FREEDOM TO OPERATE OPINIONS
This specific product is so complicated to explain, and so hugely misunderstood, that we set up an entirely separate section, below.
EXPERT WITNESS (patent processes)
PATENT MEDIATOR
REVIEWING OF PATENT ASSIGNEE DATABASE
As companies are bought and sold, the purchasers begin their diligence by checking the US Patent Office Assignment Database. However, an error in the Assignment process may not be noticed, and important patents could be overlooked in the diligence process.
Reviewing patent Assignment documents is extremely tedious, and the US Patent Office Assignment Database search engine is not robust. Nevertheless, this work has to be done, and law firms or companies should be willing to pay someone to get it done. This is also the type of semi-legal research that does not need to be performed by an attorney.
REVIEWING OF TM OWNER DATABASE
REVIEW\DOCKETING OF PUBLISHED PATENT APPS (Using Public PAIR)
TRADEMARK DOCKETING
Because all trademark filings are publicly available from the instant they are filed, it is easy to see a law firm's entire trademark portfolio. Anyone can see this, whether that law firm wants us to or not. Missing a trademark deadline or a trademark filing can have serious adverse consequences, and is preventable. But its tricky, and difficult, to review all the different papers in a particular trademark application. Now multiply that by hundreds and/or thousands of trademarks in any law firm.
Next, its no longer necessary that a particular law firm have their trademark docketing clerk work in their office, or deal with their paper files in their file room. In the past, this was necessary, but its no longer necessary.
It is my goal to staff up a team and provide docketing services to other law firms, and do so remotely. Attorneys providing docketing services to other attorneys. That is a business model that could work well. It all depends on price and efficiency.
PATENT/TRADEMARK DOCKETING
We may be among the most astute and knowledgeable docketing persons in existence, regarding both patent and trademark issues. With 23 years experience in these fields, we have encountered a lot of different types of patent and trademark deadlines, and are very familiar with the various pendency requirements and processes for filing extensions. Law firms often purchase docketing software, and this can be helpful, but like with many situation, the docketing software can go screwy, not work well, or be improperly loaded or installed. Its best to have a human reviewer to supervise and oversee the docketing processes. Regarding patents, for us to best help you, we prefer that you send us a monthly XML download of your Private PAIR account within EFS. We can then regularly sort and parse the XML file and forecast the various deadlines contained therein. To learn more, click here.
THIRD PARTY IDS
TM OPPOSITIONS
FTO LEGAL OPINIONS
EXPERT WITNESS
PATENT MEDIATOR
REVIEWING OF PATENT ASSIGNEE DATABASE
REVIEWING OF TM OWNER DATABASE
REVIEW\DOCKETING OF PUBLISHED PATENT APPS (Using Public PAIR)
COMMERCIALIZATION LEGAL OPINIONS
BANKRUPTCY SEARCHING (using e.g. either PACER or the new AACER BK resources)