Terms of Service

1. What NishaanWise is — and isn't

NishaanWise is a platform that connects you with independent, licensed advocates and gives you a way to track and communicate about your case. NishaanWise is not a law firm, does not itself provide legal advice, and does not represent anyone before the Trade Marks Registry or any court.

Your actual legal engagement — the advocate reviewing your mark, filing your application, responding to an objection, appearing at a hearing, or representing you in any contested matter — is a direct relationship between you and your advocate. It is governed by your own agreement with them, by the Advocates Act, 1961 and the Bar Council of India Rules, and by the Power of Attorney you grant them to act on your behalf — not by these terms. Nothing on this platform, including an automated deadline alert or a portal notification, constitutes legal advice; only your advocate's own direct communication with you does.

You'll always be told plainly which advocate is personally handling your case. That's a deliberate policy — one specific, named, licensed advocate, accountable for your case end-to-end, not a rotating team or an anonymous filing queue — and it stays true regardless of how many advocates work with NishaanWise over time.

2. The platform we provide

NishaanWise gives you and your advocate a shared place to work from:

• A case record showing real status — filed, under examination, objected, published, registered
• Direct, on-the-record messaging with your advocate
• Document upload and access history
• Automated tracking of statutory deadlines (like an examination objection's reply window), with alerts
• An optional WhatsApp channel — once you verify a phone number and opt in, your advocate's portal replies are also mirrored to WhatsApp. You can switch this off at any time from your account settings; the portal remains the complete record either way.

This is communication and case-tracking infrastructure. It doesn't decide anything about your case, draft anything on your behalf, or substitute for your advocate's own judgment.

3. Payment is between you and your advocate

Professional fees are agreed directly with your advocate and paid directly to them — by bank transfer or UPI, once they've invoiced you for specific work. NishaanWise does not collect, hold, or process your payment. The portal lets your advocate record a fee request and lets our team confirm that a payment was actually received, so your case record stays accurate — that confirmation step is a record-keeping function, not a transaction NishaanWise is a party to.

The government (statutory) fee paid to the Trade Marks Registry is separate again, set by the Registry, and not something either your advocate or NishaanWise marks up or retains.

4. No guaranteed outcome

Neither NishaanWise nor your advocate can guarantee that any application will be registered, that an objection or opposition will be resolved favorably, or any other specific result — the outcome depends on the Registry's own examination and, where a matter is contested, on the other side's case too.

5. Your responsibilities as a platform user

• Keep your login credentials secure, and tell us promptly if you believe your account has been accessed without authorization
• Provide accurate information in your portal profile and case details
• Use the messaging and WhatsApp channels for genuine case correspondence, not for anything unlawful or abusive

Your obligations to your advocate specifically — providing accurate case information, responding to requests for documents in reasonable time, paying agreed fees — are part of your direct engagement with them, not these platform terms.

6. How we vet advocates on the platform

We take reasonable care in who we work with — confirming an advocate's enrollment and standing before they join the platform. We don't, however, warrant or guarantee an individual advocate's performance, advice, or outcomes on any specific matter — that responsibility sits with the advocate, under their own professional and statutory obligations, not with NishaanWise.

7. Confidentiality and privilege

Communications with your advocate for the purpose of legal advice are generally privileged under Indian evidence law, and an enrolled advocate is independently bound by a professional duty of confidentiality. See our Privacy Policy for how NishaanWise itself handles personal data on the platform, including under the DPDPA, 2023.

8. Ending your use of the platform

You may stop using the platform at any time. We may suspend or end your platform access for misuse of the service — this is a decision about platform access only, separate from your legal engagement with your advocate, which continues (or ends) on its own terms between the two of you, unaffected by anything here.

9. NishaanWise's liability

Our liability relates to the platform itself — its availability, the accuracy of case-tracking information we control, and how we handle your data. Nothing here excludes or limits liability for fraud, gross negligence, or willful misconduct, or any liability that can't lawfully be excluded or limited under Indian law. Beyond that, we're not liable for your advocate's professional advice, conduct, or the outcome of any legal matter — that responsibility is theirs, under their own professional obligations, not ours.

10. Governing law and jurisdiction

These terms are governed by Indian law. Any dispute arising from them is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts at Bengaluru, Karnataka.

11. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms from time to time. Continuing to use the platform after a change means you accept the updated terms.

Questions about these terms: tomas@lexpand.in. For questions about a specific legal matter, contact the advocate handling your case directly — you'll always be told plainly who that is, and you can reach them through your case in the portal.