Terms of Business

Please find below our Terms of Business with regards to professional work we will carry out on your behalf.

Instructions

On receipt of written instructions from you we will undertake work on your behalf for a fee that will be chargeable to you.

Charges

We charge a fee for each piece of work. The fee may include a combination of charges such as official fees, Associate’s fees and a charge for time based upon the hourly rate of the fee earner handling the work, administration costs and expenses such as printing, copying and postage. Wherever possible we try to advise of and agree the total cost for each piece of work in advance. Upon receipt of payment and instructions/approval we commence or instruct and action, depending upon the nature of the work.

You are responsible for the payment of all fees as per the terms of our invoice(s).

If chargeable, VAT will be added at the current rate.

Correspondence

Often our communications will include details of important deadlines. Please take careful note of any deadlines given. Failure to meet some deadlines may result in loss of rights and/or incur additional costs.

We will also advise of the date by when we require instructions and funds in order to meet a deadline. Failure to provide written instructions and funds before our prescribed deadline is likely to result in urgency changes being payable and may jeopardize rights.

We request all instructions in writing. We may accept oral instructions but clients should ensure that we have received and understood such instructions and ideally we have acknowledged them in good time before any deadlines.

We cannot accept responsibility for acting on instructions sent by e-mail or other means that fail to arrive.

We will have no liability for any misunderstanding or misinterpretation on either side resulting from oral instructions. Please await our written advice after full consideration of the facts has been taken before taking any action.

Our offices are open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays. Mail, faxes and e-mail received after these hours will not, without prior arrangement, receive attention until the next working day.

Confidentiality

Any information provided to us that might reasonably be considered to confidential, or that you inform us is confidential, will be treated as such, except where disclosure is required and permitted by law or by you. Information and materials given to us will be kept under conditions of normal office security.

Terms of Payment

Payment of our invoices is due within fourteen days of the date of the invoice, unless otherwise agreed. In the event of you having an overdue account we have the right to cease any further work for you even if this results in the loss of your rights.

Termination

If you wish to terminate our services at any time we will require your instructions in writing.

If we wish to terminate our services to you a notice of termination will be issued.

Termination will be active from date of receipt of the instructions/notice. No further actions will be carried out for any of your cases after this date.

A statement will be issued for any outstanding charges.

Complaints Procedure

We aim to always deliver a high level of service and provide transparent billing. If you feel that our aims have not been met, please let us know and we will review your concerns promptly.

1) Contact the member of IPC who is handling your case and provide details of your concern.
2) The matter will be passed to a Director at ipconsult who will review the complaint and reply.

If following the reply received you are still not satisfied, you can contact the Legal Ombudsmen using their online form or by making contact through this address:

Legal Ombudsman
PO Box 6167
Slough
SL1 0EH

We are regulated by the Intellectual Property Board.

Retention of information

Our files and their contents (paper and electronic) remain the property of ipconsult at all times. Copies may be provided and a charge may be made for this service. We also reserve the right to withhold any documents that we regard as being confidential.

After a file has been closed it may be destroyed after an appropriate period of time.