frequently
asked questions

What cases do you handle?
‍We provide assistance on virtually all copyright, trade mark and design cases – from due diligence through to litigation. Have a look at our products page to get an idea of how we can help.
‍Notable exceptions to our IP offering are commercial and corporate work and any kind of patent cases.

How do you charge?
‍The majority of our portfolio management work is undertaken on a subscription basis. Our subscriptions are annual and we charge a single fixed fee for the year ahead. For work outside of the subscription, we operate a fixed fee schedule and will generally fix or cap our rates for any/all support requested.

We aren’t the biggest fans of the hourly rate model (don’t get us started!) but if this is how you would like to operate, or if the complexity or unpredictability of the work requires it, we will also operate on a time-charge basis.

Do you charge for initial consultations?
‍Absolutely not! You will always know in advance if we plan to charge you for any calls or advice.

Can you takeover large existing portfolios?  
‍We certainly can! We look after some of the UK’s most exciting brand portfolios, including many larger portfolios that extend across all corners of the globe.

How does that work?
‍Feel free to contact us and we can send you our transition plan, which sets out the entire transfer process step-by-step. In brief, we work with your current provider to obtain, verify and onboard all data (with very little input required from you), takeover representation at the offices where we can directly represent you, contact all overseas associates on your behalf. Once quality control is complete, we take full ownership of all deadlines and cases and (assuming you are a subscription client) provide you with access to these via our client portal.
‍The process generally takes between 4-6 weeks.

Please feel free to email us at hello@springbirdip.com, or use our contact page to send us a message!

How much does it cost?
‍We have three subscription tiers; the first is £5750 + VAT per year, the second is £7500 + VAT per year and the third is our bespoke subscription, which is priced upon request based upon a review of your portfolio and the action required over the next 12 months. Head to our Infinitely Springbird Subscription page, or send us a message to ask for more information or to obtain a quote.
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How do you calculate your subscription fees?
‍Our calculations centre around the work that we know, or can predict will be required over the upcoming 12-month period; it accounts for searches, filings, renewals, likely prosecution, recordals in process, watching services in place and enforcement activity. We attribute a cost to each activity and create a total fee based on those activities. We are transparent about our calculation process and are happy to share these details with clients as part of the onboarding or renewal process.

What is the catch?
‍There is no catch! We are extremely open about our pricing and our genuine goal is to be reasonable and to provide simplicity, transparency and certainty for both sides; as much as the subscription provides these benefits to clients, the simplicity eases administration for us too, and the transparency allows us to build much stronger relationships with our clients. In essence, we share the risk with you; there is a chance that we will be required to provide more support to you than we estimated within our proposal, or there is a chance that cases may progress more smoothly than anticipated, resulting in the fee being more than you could have paid at a traditional hourly rate. So, you take an element of risk and so do we; we think this is fairer than the traditional model which makes the client take all the risk and just pay for every minute of support required, with very little predictability or advance warning.

Is there a minimum term?
‍Yes, 12 months. Considering IP protection is not a short term, one-off project, we find a year means we can be by your side to guide you through the process and beyond (hopefully).  

We manage our own portfolio and just need out-sourced support – can you still help?
‍Yes, our bespoke subscriptions can be tailored to the client needs and so whatever support you require, we can create a subscription for you. Equally, we still support many clients on an ‘ad-hoc’ basis, particularly if there isn't the work or predictability to justify a 12-month subscription, and are happy to do this for you too.

Is this only available for luxury brands?
‍No, we have worked for all kinds of brands as part of the program, including, for example, automotive brands.

Does the program cover all types of seller?
‍The program is generally aimed at mid-level sellers as opposed to large-scale counterfeiters, but we are happy to discuss a specific case with you in order to determine if it is suitable for the program.

Is there a minimum number of cases required to be part of the program?
‍Nope!

Can this be added to our subscription?
‍Absolutely!

Who are you regulated by?
‍We are regulated by the Intellectual Property Regulation Board (https://ipreg.org.uk/), as are all our UK Chartered Trade Mark Attorneys.

How long have you been operational?
‍Springbird started trading in 2023. However, the Springbird team started life at Stephenson Law in 2021 and has worked together, and with many of its clients since then – the entire department flew the nest and continued trading just as it had at Stephenson Law, with all the same people, systems and clients.

Who are your clients?
‍Our clients are best defined as “the brands of tomorrow”. We work with scaling brands who are set to change industries, disrupt traditions and set flight into the minds of many. Example clients include Gymshark, Butternut Box, Huel and Fever-tree. Please feel free to look through our case studies and testimonials to get a feel for who we work with and what they think of us!

‍What is your expertise and experience?
‍Between us, we possess almost half a century of experience in the field of IP, advising and assisting clients to navigate all kinds of trade mark, design and copyright issues and managing many global brand portfolios.  Covering both private practice and in-house, we have a breadth of experience that allows us to consider IP management from all angles.

‍Put simply...you are in safe hands!

Our team is based across the UK, from Cheshire to Essex!

Not right now but keep an eye on this page and our social media for any upcoming vacancies! If you’d like to speculatively send your CV, you can send this to careers@springbirdip.com