Clients often ask what I charge for business travel. Business travel usually comes up in one of two ways: (a) the client wants me to meet with a Patent or Trademark Examiner to discuss their case, (usually if their application has been rejected); or (b) the client is negotiating an agreement and an in-person meeting with the other party is required.
Most matters can be handled by email, phone, and online/video conferencing.
In today’s world of mobile devices, online conferencing, and work-from-anywhere, business travel is becoming a thing of the past.
When I started practicing as an attorney, the United States Patent & Trademark Office (US PTO) headquarters was in in Alexandria, Virginia (just outside of Washington DC). If you wanted to talk to one of the Examiner’s you had two choices: (a) by phone, or (b) in person by traveling to US PTO Headquarters. The US PTO headquarters is still in Virginia, but the US PTO also has regional offices in San Jose, CA (The West Coast or Silicon Valley regional office), Detroit, Michigan, Dallas, Texas, and Denver, Colorado. But just because there are offices across the United States, does not mean that your case will be assigned to an Examiner in one of those regional offices. In fact, today most of the Examiner’s I work with are still based out of the US PTO headquarters in Virginia.
Does this mean you will be required to travel to Virginia if your case gets rejected? No.
Many Patent and Trademark Examiners now work from home. To accommodate this growing trend, the US PTO has implemented online platforms that let us to conduct Examiner Interviews by phone and video. In fact, it has been my experience that most Examiner’s prefer this over an in-person meeting.
But there may still be times that an in-person meeting is important. Trenner Law Firm has you covered!
To ensure that Trenner Law Firm provides the highest value for your business travel, you will be required to read and agree to the following Business Travel Policy, and pay a full Travel Retainer.
Scheduling. Business Travel must be scheduled at least 2 weeks in advance and must begin and end during the same business week. I do not travel/stay over for business on Saturday or Sunday. No exceptions.
Minimum Stay. Out-of-state business trips requires a minimum 2 night stay. I will arrive the night before the meeting, and return the day after the meeting. For example, if your in-person meeting is on a Tuesday, I will arrive Monday night before the meeting, and stay over Tuesday night (the night of the meeting), and return home on Wednesday. This reduces stress for everyone and ensures that we are not pressed for time on the day of the meeting.
Travel Retainer. I can only book travel arrangements after I confirm receipt of the full retainer payment. The Travel Retainer is based on estimated charges for the trip. You will be refunded any overpayment and charged for any underpayment
Meeting Time. For travel meetings, I charge a Travel Meeting Flat Fee based on my current hourly rate for 4 hours of meeting time (i.e., even if the meeting is only 1 or 2 hours). Meetings that run more than 4 hours are charged in addition at my currently hourly rate based on 0.1 hour increments. Meeting preparation time (e.g., preparing an Examiner Interview Agenda, reviewing an Agreement, summarizing the meeting and next steps) will be charged separate from Business Travel, generally as a flat fee/project basis.
Travel Time. This is a lower rate (50% of my currently hourly rate) that I charge for all unproductive travel time (i.e., when I cannot do work for another client), such as travel to the departing airport, travel from the arriving airport, and local travel between the hotel and the meeting location, etc.
Below are some estimated travel times (which may be more due to traffic, long lines at airport security, etc.):
Travel to Departing Airport (including airport security) – Est 2-3 hours per trip
Travel from Arriving Airport – Est 1-2 hours per trip
Travel between Hotel and Meeting Location – Est 0.5-1 hour per trip
Travel Expenses. Travel expenses are charged based on costs incurred, and may include Plane Ticket (plus taxes and fees), Hotel, Meals, Ground Transportation and Parking.
