The Service
What an office action is and why it matters.
An office action is an official communication from the USPTO examiner assigned to your trademark application. It means the examiner has identified an issue with your application that must be resolved before your mark can move forward to registration. Office actions are common and many applications receive at least one, but they require a timely and accurate response.
The response deadline is typically three months from the date the office action is issued, with one possible three-month extension available for a fee. If no response is filed by the deadline, your application is abandoned. An abandoned application means you lose your filing date and must start the process over from scratch.
Not all office actions are equal. A procedural office action raises administrative issues that can generally be resolved with clarification or amended language. A substantive office action raises a legal objection that requires an attorney to build a formal legal argument for why your mark should be approved. The two types require different levels of work and are priced accordingly.
If you filed your application with Armani under the Standard or Premium Filing package, procedural office action responses are already included. If you filed on your own or with another service and received an office action, Armani can step in, review your application, and handle the response regardless of how the original filing was prepared.
What's Included
Two types of office actions. Two flat fees.
Procedural Office Action Response - $300
Procedural office actions are administrative in nature. They ask for clarification, correction, or additional information. Armani handles all of the following under the procedural response fee:
Substantive Office Action Response - $550
Substantive office actions raise legal objections that require a formal written argument from an attorney. Armani handles the following under the substantive response fee:
Who It's For
Anyone with an open office action and a deadline approaching.
Office action response is available to anyone with a pending trademark application, regardless of how the original application was filed.
Process
From office action to response, step by step.
Complete the intake form for either procedural or substantive response. Include the date the office action was issued and your current application number so Armani can locate and review your file immediately.
Armani reviews the office action, your original application, and the examiner's specific objections. For substantive refusals, she assesses the strength of the available arguments and advises on the realistic path forward before drafting begins.
For procedural responses, the necessary amendments and clarifications are drafted and prepared for submission. For substantive responses, a formal legal argument is built addressing the examiner's specific grounds for refusal.
The completed response is submitted to the USPTO before the deadline. You receive confirmation of filing and Armani monitors the application for the examiner's follow-up action.
The examiner reviews the response. If the refusal is overcome, the application moves forward to publication. If the examiner issues a final refusal, Armani advises on appeal options and next steps.
Pricing
Two flat fees. No surprises.
USPTO fees: There is generally no government fee for filing an office action response. However, certain types of responses may require additional USPTO fees depending on the specific action taken. See the USPTO fee schedule for a complete list. Armani will advise if any additional fees apply to your specific situation before filing.
Get Started
Office action received? Start here.
Select the intake form that matches the type of office action you received. If you are not sure whether your office action is procedural or substantive, complete either form and Armani will confirm the type and applicable fee after reviewing your file.
Procedural Office Action
For non-substantive examiner requests: identification amendments, specimen issues, disclaimers, color claims, and other clarification requests.
Substantive Office Action
For legal objections: likelihood of confusion, descriptiveness refusals, surname refusals, and other substantive grounds for refusal.
FAQ
Questions about office action responses.
The office action itself will state the grounds for the examiner's refusal or request. Procedural actions typically ask you to amend something: your description of goods and services, your specimen, a disclaimer, or other administrative details. Substantive actions cite a legal basis for refusal, most commonly a likelihood of confusion with an existing registered mark, or a determination that your mark is merely descriptive. If you are unsure, submit either intake form and Armani will confirm the type after reviewing your application.
The standard response deadline is three months from the date the office action was issued. One three-month extension is available for a USPTO fee if more time is needed. If no response is filed by the final deadline, the application is considered abandoned and cannot be revived without a separate petition and additional fees. Do not wait until the last minute. Contact Armani as soon as you receive an office action to allow sufficient time to prepare a complete and well-reasoned response.
Yes. Armani can step in as attorney of record on any pending application, whether you filed it yourself, used a different attorney, or used a non-attorney filing service. She will review the full application history and the office action before advising on the best response strategy. If the original application has issues that complicate the response, she will flag those as well.
A final refusal is not the absolute end of the process. You have the option to appeal to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, or in some cases to request reconsideration from the examiner before appeal. The right path depends on the specific grounds for the final refusal and the strength of the available arguments. Armani advises on next steps if a final refusal is issued and can represent you in an appeal if the situation warrants it.
In most cases, no. There is generally no government fee required to file an office action response. However, certain types of responses may require additional USPTO fees depending on the specific action taken, such as adding a class of goods and services or requesting an extension of time. Armani will advise you on any additional fees that may apply to your specific situation before filing. You can also review the full USPTO fee schedule at uspto.gov for reference.
This is one of the most common situations Armani steps into. Non-attorney filing services can submit applications but cannot provide legal advice or draft substantive responses. A substantive refusal, particularly a likelihood of confusion refusal, requires a legal argument that addresses specific factors the USPTO examiner weighs. Attempting to respond without an attorney significantly reduces the chances of overcoming the refusal. Armani reviews the application, assesses the strength of the arguments available, and handles the full response from that point forward.