We stand behind our trademark assessments.
At Rights Plus IP Office, we believe that our professional responsibility does not end when a trademark application is filed.
If we assess your trademark as highly likely to be registered, we believe it is fair for us to share the financial risk if the Japan Patent Office (JPO) issues a Notification of Reasons for Refusal (Office Action) during the examination of your application.
That is why we offer our Trademark Risk-Sharing Policy, which provides free Office Action responses for low-risk applications and limits our professional fees for other applications.
How It Works
Before filing, we assess the likelihood of registration for each class of goods or services and assign a risk rating.
Our Office Action response fees depend on which classes are subject to a Notification of Reasons for Refusal issued by the JPO.
| Assessment | Estimated Likelihood of Registration | Office Action Response Fee |
| Rank A | 80% or higher | Free (¥0) |
| Rank B or lower | 60% or lower | ¥33,000 maximum per application |
Note: There is intentionally no middle rank. An estimate of 60–80% would amount to “it could go either way,” which is not a useful professional opinion. We commit to one assessment or the other: if we cannot confidently rate a class as Rank A, we rate it Rank B or lower.
If the JPO issues a Notification of Reasons for Refusal concerning only Rank A classes, we will prepare and submit the necessary responses at no additional professional fee.
If a Notification of Reasons for Refusal concerns one or more classes rated Rank B or lower, a flat professional fee of ¥33,000 applies.
All professional fees include Japanese consumption tax.
Multiple Classes and Multiple Office Actions
Our risk assessments are made separately for each class, but Office Action response fees are charged per application, not per class.
| Classes Receiving Objections | Professional Fee |
| Rank A classes only | Free (¥0) |
| One Rank B or lower class | ¥33,000 |
| Multiple Rank B or lower classes | ¥33,000 |
| Both Rank A and lower-ranked classes | ¥33,000 |
Our total professional fee for Office Action responses is capped at ¥33,000 per application.
This cap applies regardless of:
- The number of classes receiving reasons for refusal.
- The number of Notifications of Reasons for Refusal issued during the examination process.
- The number of responses required before the JPO issues its decision.
If we have already charged ¥33,000 for an application, no additional professional fee will be charged for subsequent Office Action responses during the examination stage.
What Is Included
Our Office Action response service generally includes:
- Reviewing and analyzing the reasons for refusal issued by the JPO.
- Preparing and submitting written arguments (Opinions).
- Preparing and submitting amendments to the designated goods or services, where appropriate.
- Handling subsequent Notifications of Reasons for Refusal during the examination stage.
The applicable fee is determined by our pre-filing risk assessment and the classes affected by the JPO’s reasons for refusal.
The policy covers our ordinary professional work in responding to Notifications of Reasons for Refusal. Extensive evidence collection, additional investigations, or other exceptional work may require a separate quotation and your prior approval.
When We Recommend Reconsidering an Application
If our trademark search identifies substantial registration risks, particularly across multiple classes, we may recommend reconsidering the proposed trademark or the designated goods or services before filing.
We do not believe that filing an application is always the best choice.
Our goal is not simply to help you register a trademark in Japan, but to help you protect a name that works for your business.
Appeals and Other Proceedings
Our Trademark Risk-Sharing Policy applies only to responses to Notifications of Reasons for Refusal issued during the JPO examination process, before a decision to register or refuse the trademark.
The following proceedings are not covered by this policy:
- Appeals Against Refusal: If the JPO issues a decision of refusal and you wish to appeal, the appeal proceedings will require a separate quotation and additional professional fees.
- Post-Registration Oppositions: If a third party files an opposition against your trademark registration after registration, responding to that opposition will require a separate quotation and additional professional fees.
- Other Proceedings: Invalidation trials, cancellation trials, and other proceedings or disputes are also outside the scope of this policy and require separate arrangements and fees.
We will review the circumstances and inform you whether we can accept the requested proceedings.
You may also engage another qualified Japanese patent and trademark attorney to handle these matters.
Important Notes
- No guarantee of registration: Our risk assessments represent our professional judgment at the time of the trademark search. They do not guarantee that the JPO will approve the application.
- Class-based assessment: Risk ratings are assigned separately to each class of designated goods or services.
- Assessment before filing: The applicable risk ratings are those confirmed by our office before filing. Material changes to the trademark or designated goods or services may require reassessment.
- Scope of the fee cap: The ¥33,000 cap applies only to ordinary responses to Notifications of Reasons for Refusal issued during the JPO examination process. Appeals against refusal, post-registration oppositions, and separately agreed services are excluded.
- Official fees: Any applicable JPO official fees are charged separately.
- Advance approval: We will inform you of any additional professional fees and obtain your approval before undertaking separately chargeable work.
Our Commitment
We believe that a trademark attorney should do more than simply file applications and charge additional fees when problems arise.
By sharing the financial risk of our own professional assessments, we aim to provide a more transparent and responsible trademark registration service in Japan.