Filed Right Guarantee
Filed right, or your fee back. Version 1.0, effective November 3, 2026.
Every application this firm files is inspected before it goes to the USPTO. If the USPTO sends a formalities notice because of something we did or missed, we fix it at no charge, we pay the extra government fees it causes, and we refund our attorney fee for that application.
This guarantee is part of every engagement letter for a covered filing. It is in addition to, and does not limit, any other rights you have.
What it covers
The guarantee applies to U.S. patent applications and U.S. trademark applications that this firm prepares and files with the USPTO under a signed engagement letter. It covers the notices listed below when the USPTO sends one because of an error or omission by the firm or by anyone the firm hires, such as a patent illustrator.
Patent applications
| Notice | What it usually means |
|---|---|
| Notice to File Missing Parts (provisional or nonprovisional) | A required fee, cover sheet, inventor oath or declaration, or other part was not filed |
| Notice of Incomplete Application | A filing-date requirement was not met, such as a missing specification or claims |
| Notice of Omitted Items | Pages of the specification or sheets of drawings were left out |
| Notice to File Corrected Application Papers | Drawings, specification, or claims do not meet USPTO formatting rules |
| Filing receipt errors | Wrong inventor, applicant, title, entity status, or a missing domestic or foreign priority claim, as entered by the firm |
| Sequence listing notices (biotech filings) | A required ST.26 XML sequence listing is missing or non-compliant |
| Notice of Non-Compliant or Non-Responsive Amendment | A reply the firm prepared during prosecution did not meet formal requirements |
Trademark applications
For trademarks, the USPTO raises most formal problems in an Office action rather than a separately named notice. The guarantee covers these when the problem comes from information the firm entered or a requirement the firm should have met at filing:
| Notice or Office action | What it usually means |
|---|---|
| Notice of Incomplete Application | A filing-date requirement was missing, such as the applicant’s name, a drawing of the mark, the goods or services, or the fee for at least one class |
| Applicant information requirement | Wrong applicant name, entity type, state or country of organization, citizenship, or domicile address, as entered by the firm |
| Filing basis or dates-of-use requirement | A filing basis or date of use entered by the firm that doesn’t match the information you gave us |
| Drawing, description, color, or translation requirement | A required mark description, color claim, translation, or transliteration was left out, or the drawing was in the wrong format |
| Classification or fee requirement | Goods or services placed in the wrong class, a class fee left unpaid, or a USPTO surcharge triggered by the firm’s entries |
| Declaration or signature requirement | The verified statement the firm prepared was missing, unsigned, or signed by someone without authority to sign |
| Incomplete response | A response the firm filed that the USPTO treated as incomplete for a formal reason, such as a missing signature |
What you get when a notice is our fault
- Fixed fast and free. We file the correction within 5 business days of receiving the notice, and before the USPTO deadline, at no attorney fee.
- Government extras on us. We pay every surcharge, petition fee, and extension fee the notice causes. The ordinary official fees you would have paid anyway stay with you.
- Your fee back. We refund the attorney fee you paid for that application within 10 business days of confirming the notice was our fault. This is in addition to the free correction.
- Lost filing date or lost rights. If our error costs you your filing date or a priority claim and it cannot be restored, you also get a replacement application prepared and filed at no attorney fee. The same applies if our error makes a trademark application void, for example by filing it in the name of someone who does not own the mark. A replacement application receives a new filing date.
What “attorney fee for that application” means. It is the flat attorney fee you paid for the service under which the application was filed. If that service was part of a bundle, it is the amount your engagement letter assigns to that application. If the letter assigns none, it is the listed price of that filing service when you bought it. It never exceeds what you actually paid. It does not include official fees, third-party costs such as search reports, or services bought separately. Refunds go to the original payment method.
How we prevent these notices
The 14-Point Patent Filing Inspection
Before any patent application is filed, it passes this inspection. You get a copy with your filing receipt.
| # | Inspection point |
|---|---|
| 1 | Application Data Sheet complete: inventors, residences, mailing addresses, applicant, correspondence |
| 2 | Inventors match the claimed invention, as confirmed with you in writing |
| 3 | Applicant is the company, with assignments from every inventor recorded or ready to record |
| 4 | Entity status (large, small, or micro) verified against your written certification |
| 5 | Fees calculated and paid: filing, search, examination, excess claims, and application size |
| 6 | Specification filed in DOCX format to avoid the non-DOCX surcharge |
| 7 | Drawings checked against 37 CFR 1.84 formatting rules |
| 8 | Claims numbered and formatted, with multiple dependent claims checked for fees and form |
| 9 | Abstract on its own page, 150 words or fewer |
| 10 | Sequence listing in ST.26 XML, where the invention requires one |
| 11 | Domestic and foreign priority and benefit claims entered in the ADS, within their time limits |
| 12 | Inventor oath or declaration filed, or deferral documented with your written approval |
| 13 | Power of attorney and information disclosure statement (IDS) ready or filed |
| 14 | Nonpublication request and foreign filing decisions made with you in writing |
Filing receipt check. Within 3 business days of the USPTO filing receipt, we check it against the application and request any corrections at no attorney fee.
The 9-Point Trademark Filing Inspection
Before any trademark application is filed, it passes this inspection. You get a copy with your filing receipt.
| # | Inspection point |
|---|---|
| 1 | Applicant is the company that owns the mark, with its exact legal name, entity type, and state or country of organization |
| 2 | Domicile and correspondence addresses complete and current |
| 3 | Mark drawing in the right format: standard characters, or a special-form image that matches the mark you use or plan to use |
| 4 | Goods and services approved by you in writing, using USPTO ID Manual wording wherever it fits |
| 5 | Every class identified and its fee calculated and paid |
| 6 | Filing basis confirmed with you in writing: use in commerce, with dates of first use and a specimen reviewed, or intent to use |
| 7 | Mark description, color claim, translation, and transliteration included where required |
| 8 | Declaration signed by a person with authority to sign for the company |
| 9 | Prior registrations and foreign priority claims entered, if any |
Filing receipt check. Within 3 business days of the USPTO filing receipt, we check it against the application and request any corrections at no attorney fee.
What it does not cover
The guarantee covers our errors. It does not cover:
- Planned missing parts. Sometimes filing without fees or a signed declaration is the right move to lock in a filing date fast. If you approve this in writing, the resulting Notice to File Missing Parts is planned, not an error, and its surcharge is quoted to you in advance.
- Information you supplied incorrectly, such as inventor names, addresses, ownership, dates of use, or entity status facts you certified.
- Late client items. Signatures, documents, or official fee payments not returned by the date we requested in writing (at least 5 business days before they were needed).
- USPTO errors. If the USPTO sends a notice in error, we respond or petition at no attorney fee, but no refund applies because nothing was filed improperly.
- Substantive rejections. Office actions on patentability, such as prior-art or eligibility rejections, are part of normal examination. They are not formalities notices.
- Trademark registrability refusals, such as likelihood of confusion, descriptiveness, or failure to function, and disclaimer requirements. These are about the mark itself, not about how it was filed.
- Trademark wording the examiner asks to change, such as narrowing the description of goods or services, unless the firm entered goods or services you did not approve or put them in the wrong class.
- Specimen refusals based on how the mark is actually used in the marketplace.
- Oppositions, cancellations, and letters of protest filed by others.
- Applications we did not prepare and file, including applications you or another firm filed before we took them over.
The guarantee is about filing correctly. It is not a promise that a patent will issue or that a trademark will register.
How to claim it
- Forward the notice to us, or we will forward it to you first, since we docket every one.
- Within 2 business days, we tell you in writing whether the notice was our fault, planned, client-related, or a USPTO error, and why.
- If it was our fault, the correction is filed within 5 business days and your refund is issued within 10 business days.
Version 1.0, effective November 3, 2026. The version in effect when you sign your engagement letter applies to that engagement.
Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.