Searching for the Best Deal for you

One of the ideas when we set up this group was to try and increase the buying power of the solo practitioner and remind vendors that we are a significant, worthwhile and influential part of the market. There has been some success (with a lot of help from our friends) so, for example, Westlaw IP is available to solo practitioners and you can become a member of INTA at solo practitioner rates. However our efforts to secure the latest proposal has been the greatest pleasure. Corsearch has been sponsoring the ITMA evening lectures. The next one  on 23 July being a particularly promising offering with Allan James of the IPO on case management. See some of his recently managed cases here.

Join the Queue to Analyse your Search

After those ITMA evening meetings you get a chance to chat to the Corsearch team over a glass of wine or three, but equally you can enjoy the wine and canapes while networking with professional colleagues too. Now some of us may have taken this opportunity to draw attention to the deficiencies of big search provider's volume based pricing models if you are a  SOLO practitioner, especially now that both the UK IPO search pages and TMView are free and amazingly clever.

The most important thing for a client is to be able to understand the results and it is the trademark agent's job to make that easy. The Corsearch tools are aimed at doing just that. So having appreciated that they are selling tools for manipulating data and not the data which is and should be freely available, it seems sensible to have a software style pricing model that allows access for single users as well as the large corporates and that is what we are now offered. Since its always good to get to grips with new tools and see just how you can use them to wow your clients, we are thinking of arranging a hands on training events, focused on search for those UK SMEs whose new brands are going to drag the economy out of its present parlous state. Please comment or reply if you are interested  and let us know where is your preferred location. I have a vote for Cambridge from existing master user, Roman Cholij of Cam Trademarks who already knows what his clients love about his search results. I also have vote for Manchester comes from @TrademarksHale.

As an added incentive Roman tells me "The Corsearch screening system is ideal for my needs - the tools offer greater flexibility and usability than the free data sites, which makes Corsearch a valuable resource for my practice. I would also add that the team is amazingly friendly and customer focused with fast response times, which makes it very easy to strongly recommend Corsearch to all."

Now it is clear that there is a demand for the risk analysis of a search provided by a professional attorney. Yes or No Free searches leave many clients unsatisfied and even if you do a proper search, if you want to show that you have been honestly you need to have taken advice as well - as Birss J tells us in the Redd Solicitors case. Its paragraphs 113 and 114 and note that it down at the 9th factor to be taken into account. This opportunity is too good a one to miss

Studying through the Summer ..

...is a lonely experience even if you do work in a large organisation. Although its no longer that "Joint" the Examination Board that sets the exams for qualifying as a Registered Patent Agent in the UK is still to be found at www.jointexaminationboard.org.uk and its schedule for 2013 exams asks you to register by August 9, so if you have not written your revision timetable now may be a good time to start suggests Dr Doug Ealey author of Study Guide to the Patents Acts which you can buy from CIPA along with other promising titles for the procrastinating student. Doug also suggests that the LinkedIn Group is also a good resource for discussing issues, if your supervisor is too old to remember sitting his or her exams.

I feel quite sorry for those studying for P2 as the 2012 exam paper paints such a dismal picture of small firm practice, as to make you think that a career as an MP despite the paltry salary may be a better proposition. Still its a hurdle you must pass so write the timetable and take all the advice to heart about reading the whole paper first, allocating time according to the marks available and making sure you have the right sort of handwriting (legible) and the right sort of chewy sweets to act as a displacement activity when your wrist tires. Its also quite wise to remember that the examiner has a marking scheme and so each relevant point well made tends to score a mark, sometimes two, so you need to hit the points and make sure you make it clear that you think you have earned one by starting your next mark winning point with a new line.

Now about that gluten free dough, in 2012 P2 Q8 why does the examiner think its obvious?