Conducted by licensed private investigators with extensive experience in intellectual property investigations, trademark use investigations provide evidence of a trademark's past and present use in commerce for trademark clearance, registration, litigation and related intellectual property disputes.

All cases are discussed prior to the investigation and an investigative strategy and objective is determined.

We will discuss with you and develop an investigative strategy to meet those objectives, and present you with our best estimate as to the amount of time needed for the investigation. Once a strategy is determined we will approximate the number of investigative hours and associated costs needed to meet the objective. You are always updated on the status of the investigation and we will not exceed the agreed upon costs without your approval.

Once you have authorized an investigation, our expert trademark investigators will begin working the case. In most cases, the first step is to develop as much information as possible from database sources, including advanced Internet search tools and restricted sources available to us as licensed private investigators.

Then, we typically use this information to develop an appropriate context in which to contact persons with direct knowledge of the use of a trademark, how long a given brand has been in certain geographic markets, and in many cases information about the future plans for the brand.

This contact is made anonymously and discreetly, using a variety of investigative techniques. We document and  acquire the evidence of a trademark's use, either on products or on a related company.

All cases are discussed personally before we provide you with a detailed written report at the conclusion of the investigation, unless you specifically waive the written report.

In many cases, a trademark in-use investigation will be completed in less than two weeks.  In particularly urgent matters, we may be able to provide an initial verbal report on a same or next-day basis. However, it's important to note that the number of days required for a trademark investigation depends on the specifics of the matter - and the availability of subjects.

Trademark investigations are of a complex nature and we believe "one size" does not fit all. Each case is unique and requires specific skills only acquired after years of experience in investigating trademark cases.

All investigations are handled confidentially and require a written contract for service.