Store Terms of Service

Intellectual Property

1.             Our Agreement With You

1.1.         Thank you for choosing Sladen Legal to provide you with trade mark searching and reporting services (Services).  We, (the Lantern Legal Group Pty Ltd ACN 076 868 034 trading as Sladen Legal) are a Melbourne based law firm with expertise in intellectual property.

1.2.         In submitting an application for Services through our website www.sladen.com.au (Website), you (as an individual or a legal entity you represent) accept these terms and conditions.  If you do not accept these terms and conditions, please contact us to make other arrangements.

1.3.         We may amend and update these terms and conditions from time to time.  Please read these terms each time you use our Service. 

2.             Submitting an Application

2.1.         To access our Services, you will need to complete an online form for each product available at www.sladen.com.au/sladen-store (Application).  Please ensure all the details you enter are correct as your details will form the basis on which the Services are provided.

2.2.         By submitting an Application, you are requesting that we provide the selected Service.

2.3.         Shortly after submitting an Application, we will send an email confirming the details of the Application.  If you do not receive this confirmation email within two hours of submitting your Application, please notify us at ip@sladen.com.au.

2.4.         We will review the information submitted in the Application to ensure you have given us enough information to conduct the Service and to enable us to undertake internal checking to confirm no conflict prevents us from acting on your behalf.  We will contact you by email if for any reason we are unable to perform the Service and we will of course refund the Fee in full.

2.5.         If we do not contact you as set out in paragraph 2.4, we will conduct the Service and deliver the Search Report to you within the timeframe allowed.

3.             The Services

3.1.         Our Services are designed to provide a streamlined way for you to make decisions about the availability and use of your trade mark in Australia.  Each of our Services will deliver a range of information. You need to ensure you select the Service that best suits your needs.  If unsure, contact us at ip@sladen.com.au.  By selecting a Service, you acknowledge it is suitable to your needs.

3.2.         For each Service, you will obtain a report containing details of trade marks that are registered or under examination relevant to the Service you have selected (Search Report).  If you have elected to obtain advice, we will also advise on the likely chance of successfully registering your trade mark (Advice). 

3.3.         You understand and acknowledge that we are unable to guarantee the registrability of your trade mark as there are a number of factors that impact on this and your use that cannot be determined by conducting the Services.  Depending on the Service you select, our Search Report and/or Advice will not take into consideration or include an assessment of:

3.3.1.     for a Knockout Search only, similar trade marks or images that could prevent registration including visual and oral differences;

3.3.2.     whether your trade mark will infringe any unregistered trade marks used in Australia (ONLY available with a Full Clearance Trade Mark Search & Advice);

3.3.3.     the availability of your trade mark in other countries;

3.3.4.     whether the protection you seek is suitable for your purposes;

3.3.5.     if your trade mark infringes a well known trade mark in Australia where protection extends beyond the scope of its registration;

3.3.6.     whether the trade mark application will be filed in the correct owner name for ownership, asset protection and/or tax purposes;

3.3.7.     whether the Australian Trade Marks Office will reject your trade mark on another basis including descriptiveness, misleading connotation or being contrary to existing laws (ONLY available with our Advice component); and

3.3.8.     whether a third party will oppose the registration of your trade mark.

3.4.         You understand that the Search Report will be current as at the date of delivery.  The Trade Marks Office can take up to two weeks to record the filing of new applications and six months to process applications claiming convention priority. We are unable to take into account these applications as they will not be recorded on the Australian Trade Marks Register on the date of our search.

3.5.         If your trade mark is a graphical device without words, we may be unable to conduct the search and we will contact you in relation to this.

3.6.         You will inform us if your contact details change to enable us to deliver the Service to you.

3.7.         If after the provision of the Service, you are ready to register your trade mark, please contact us and we can assist you to obtain the broadest protection possible.

4.             Uploading Files

4.1.         If you utilise the uploading file function on the Website, you will not upload any document, file, application or any electronic or digital device that has the effect of undermining the integrity of the Website or damaging or disrupting the Website and/or us including knowingly transmitting a virus.

5.             Amendments and Cancellations

5.1.         You are responsible for the details you submit for each Service.  We will conduct the Services based on the information you provide to us.

5.2.         You may amend or cancel a Service at any time prior to our commencement of the Service.  Please email us at ip@sladen.com.au as soon possible.  We will then confirm if we have commenced the Service. 

5.3.         If we confirm a cancelled Service, we will process the refunded Fee within ten business days.

5.4.         If we confirm we have commenced your Service, we are not able to cancel the Service and the Fee will not be refunded.

6.             Payments

6.1.         The price payable for the Service is that specified on our Website on the day you submit your Application and may change from time to time (Fee).

6.2.         Your Application will not be processed without receipt of your payment.

6.3.         We will issue you with a tax invoice upon receipt of the payment.

6.4.         As an online Service, we only accept payments by credit card.  We use an external payment processing gateway (Payment Gateway) that has the most stringent level of security certification available, PCI Service Provider Level 1.  Our Payment Gateway complies with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) and uses Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology to lock all critical information passed from you to us, such as payment information, making it extremely difficult for this information to be intercepted.  SSL Credit Card details are not permanently stored on our Payment Gateway system. 

6.5.         We use AES-256 bit encryption for temporary storage of your credit card details. Your card number is stored until the Service has been finalised, then it is deleted from the Payment Gateway. Consequently, your credit card number must be entered if you file another Application. 

6.6.         Our Payment Gateway charges a transaction fee of 1.75% + 30c for Australian cards and 2.9% + 30c for international and American Express cards per application which is incorporated in the Fee.

6.7.         You understand there will be additional costs if you require further assistance, advice or wish to file a trade mark application.  However, we will not incur any additional costs on your behalf without your consent.

7.             Intellectual Property

7.1.         We own all intellectual property (including trade marks and copyright) subsisting in our Website, any content on the Website (including all data, graphics, photographs, images, software) and any documents we prepare on your behalf. 

7.2.         You acknowledge that you do not acquire any ownership rights in any of the intellectual property subsisting in the works mentioned in clause 7.1.

8.             Privacy

8.1.         Your privacy is important to us.  We comply with the Australian Privacy Principles and will share our privacy policy with you without charge upon your request.

8.2.         We may have a need to use your information in order for us to provide our Services and improve our Service.  The way in which we use information is detailed in our privacy policy.

8.3.         We will not sell your information to third parties.

9.             Liabilities

9.1.         As an online service, we are reliant upon third parties to provide aspects of the Services to us including information from the Australian Trade Marks Office and internet capabilities from our internet service provider.  Therefore we are unable to guarantee an uninterrupted Service or that the information obtained from the Australian Trade Marks Office is error free.  We are not liable for any loss, damage or expense for failing to provide the Services, for any delay in the provision of the Services or any errors in the information obtained from the Australian Trade Marks Office.

9.2.         The Services may assist you to make decisions.  We are not liable for any action you take or inaction resulting from the provision of the Services including any indirect or consequential loss.

9.3.         The goods and services provided by us come with certain guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian Consumer Law. Our liability for any breach of those guarantees is limited to the replacement of goods or re-supply or services or the replacement cost of goods or re-supply of services.

9.4.         In relation to any express warranty or condition set out in these terms in connection with goods or services supplied or offered by us, our liability to you will be limited to the Fees paid by you (if any) in respect of those goods or services.

10.          GST

10.1.       In this Agreement "tax invoice" and "taxable supply" have the meaning given to them in A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (C'th) (as amended) and "GST" means the goods and services tax payable under that Act.

10.2.       To the extent that a party makes a taxable supply (Supplier) in connection with this Agreement to the other party (Recipient) then, except where express provision is made to the contrary, the consideration for the taxable supply is the GST exclusive amount (Consideration). The Recipient will additionally pay to the Supplier the GST amount applicable to the taxable supply (GST).

10.3.       The Supplier shall provide to the Recipient a tax invoice clearly denoting the Consideration and the GST amounts, both of which are to be paid by the Recipient to the Supplier in accordance with the terms of the preceding clause.

11.          General Provisions

11.1.       These terms shall in all respects be governed by the laws of Victoria, Australia. You consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts in Victoria to determine any matter or dispute which may arise.

11.2.       If any provision of these terms is deemed invalid or unenforceable, all or part of that provision will be severed from the terms and will not affect the enforceability of the remaining provisions of the terms.

11.3.       No waiver of any term shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term of any other term. Any failure to assert any right under these terms shall not constitute a waiver of such right.

11.4.       You may not amend these terms without our prior written consent.

11.5.       Words (including defined expressions) denoting the singular will be deemed to include the plural and vice versa.