AMAZON PATENT EVALUATION EXPRESS · FOR FOREIGN CLIENTS
Amazon APEX
Seller Defense
Start with the notice, the claim, and the actual product.
We help overseas sellers, brands, and their local counsel respond to U.S. utility-patent complaints through Amazon Patent Evaluation Express (APEX). We review the asserted claim, actual product configuration, available evidence, and procedural instructions to develop a supported written defense.
Substantive preliminary assessment: $1,000. Standard four-stage attorney fees: $12,500 total. Evaluator deposits and third-party expenses are separate.
Seeking to enforce your patent? See APEX patent owner representation →
Received an APEX notice?
1. REVIEW THE ORIGINAL NOTICE
Retain Amazon’s and the evaluator’s notices. Record notice dates, participation requirements, payment requirements, submission deadlines, and the applicable time zone. Treat each stage’s dates separately; do not assume a single deadline governs everything.
2. PRESERVE PRODUCT EVIDENCE
Save the reported ASIN pages, model numbers, photographs, manuals, and available product documentation. Record version and configuration differences so that superficially similar products are not treated as technically identical.
3. CONFIRM WHO GIVES INSTRUCTIONS
Identify whether the seller, brand owner, or local counsel will coordinate. Confirm who supplies technical facts, approves drafts and expenses, and receives procedural notices. Do not decide infringement based only on product appearance or the complainant’s conclusion.
Amazon states that reported listings may be removed if no seller participates or if the neutral evaluator finds infringement. The actual options, consequences, and deadlines must be checked against the current notice and written rules for the matter.
What APEX is
APEX is Amazon’s neutral evaluation process for U.S. utility-patent disputes. An independent patent attorney evaluates the parties’ written materials and the alleged infringement. Design patents, non-U.S. patents, and expired patents are outside the scope described by Amazon. A U.S. utility patent is not the equivalent of a Chinese utility model.
An APEX evaluation differs from a full court proceeding and a court judgment. We provide legal representation to the seller as a party; our firm is independent of Amazon and does not represent Amazon or the neutral evaluator. The available defenses, evidence, and additional filings depend on the current agreement and evaluator instructions.
How we assist sellers
NOTICE AND PATENT REVIEW
Review the asserted claim, relevant prosecution history, complainant’s materials, and procedural notices. Identify the technical issues, facts needing confirmation, and key dates.
PRODUCT AND NONINFRINGEMENT ANALYSIS
Compare each relevant claim limitation with the actual accused configuration and evidence. Analyze key terms and supported technical differences, and develop a defensible noninfringement position.
WRITTEN RESPONSE AND EXHIBITS
Prepare the agreed seller response, claim chart, exhibits, and supporting argument. Before preparing further submissions, expert declarations, or other evidence, confirm what the evaluator expressly permits.
SUBMISSION AND CLIENT COORDINATION
Coordinate submission requirements and accepted deadlines, consolidate comments from the client and local counsel, and confirm transmission. Agree communication language, approval contacts, and revision rounds before work begins.
A staged engagement
After initial contact, we complete the necessary conflicts review and confirm the responsible attorney, scope, fees, materials, and deadlines in writing. Work proceeds only through authorized stages. The evaluator’s case-specific written directions control the permitted materials, payment requirements, and deadlines.
Four-stage fees: $12,500
STAGE 1 · SUBSTANTIVE PRELIMINARY ASSESSMENT — $1,000
Initial review of the asserted claim, available product materials, and APEX notices. Deliver a written preliminary assessment identifying the main issues, important factual gaps, initial defense direction, and a recommendation on whether to participate. Includes one assessment discussion of up to 30 minutes. Excludes full prosecution-history analysis, a limitation-by-limitation claim chart, and a formal response.
STAGE 2 · TECHNICAL AND DEFENSE ANALYSIS — $3,500
Review the asserted claim and relevant prosecution history, compare the client’s existing product evidence limitation by limitation, and prepare written defense analysis and a claim chart. This stage does not include a formal submission.
STAGE 3 · FORMAL SELLER RESPONSE — $7,500
Using the Stage 2 analysis, prepare one formal response and exhibits. Includes one consolidated round of substantive client revisions, submission under the procedural instructions, and transmission confirmation.
STAGE 4 · EVALUATION-RESULT REVIEW — $500
Provide a written explanation of the result and an overview of subsequent options, plus one results discussion of up to 30 minutes. Further proceedings or external action are excluded.
Total: $12,500 ($1,000 + $3,500 + $7,500 + $500), with no additional package fee. You may begin with the $1,000 assessment and decide afterward whether to proceed. Later stages require authorization; unstarted later stages are not charged. Fees for stages already begun and termination arrangements follow the engagement agreement.
What the standard fee covers
One evaluation, one asserted claim from one U.S. patent, one product family, up to five ASINs with materially identical technical configurations, and one principal defense theory. ASIN means Amazon Standard Identification Number. These are our fee-scope assumptions, not statements of APEX program limits.
The client supplies complete, usable existing product materials. The formal response includes one consolidated round of substantive revisions. Later stages build on the earlier analysis. Where existing work is supplied, we first confirm what can be reused and the applicable fees. Eligibility for the standard scope and payment arrangements are confirmed in writing before work begins.
PERMITTED SUPPLEMENTAL SUBMISSION — $1,000 EACH
Available only when the evaluator expressly permits it and the client separately authorizes it, for the same matter and existing technical issues. Includes one consolidated revision round. This is outside the $12,500 total and does not imply an automatic right to another reply.
EXPANDED SCOPE REQUIRES PRIOR AGREEMENT
Additional patents or claims, different product configurations, materially different technical issues, or separate evaluations require written confirmation of additional scope and fees first. Settlement, litigation, post-decision enforcement, and other proceedings require separate engagements.
Evaluator deposit and other expenses
Amazon’s public information, checked October 24, 2026, states a $5,000 evaluator deposit per participating party, paid directly to the neutral evaluator and separate from our attorney fees. Current written instructions govern payment, refunds, and separate-evaluation arrangements. A refunded deposit does not reimburse attorney fees or other expenses.
Product purchases, testing, reverse engineering, translation, additional technical consulting, experts, and other third-party costs are excluded and require separate scope confirmation and approval. We do not guarantee an evaluation result, uninterrupted listing availability, or a particular completion date.
Common questions
CAN I RETAIN ONLY THE INITIAL ASSESSMENT OR STOP BETWEEN STAGES?
Yes. Start with the $1,000 substantive assessment and written recommendation, then decide whether to authorize later work. Unstarted later stages are not charged. Work already begun and termination arrangements are governed by the written engagement.
DOES RECEIVING A COMPLAINT MEAN INFRINGEMENT HAS BEEN DECIDED?
No. A complaint or evaluation notice does not itself establish that the neutral evaluator has found infringement. Review the notice, patent, and product, then decide participation and response in accordance with the applicable requirements.
CAN I CHOOSE NOT TO PARTICIPATE?
That decision requires review of the listing risk and procedural consequences. Amazon states that reported listings may be removed if no seller participates. Check the notice’s options, dates, and consequences promptly and confirm the handling arrangements.
CAN EVERY PATENT DEFENSE BE RAISED IN APEX?
APEX is not full-scale patent litigation. The current agreement and evaluator’s directions determine which issues, evidence, and further documents are allowed. Issues requiring another forum are assessed separately from the permitted APEX response.
CAN CHINESE COUNSEL OR A PATENT AGENCY COORDINATE?
Yes. Explain existing local counsel and the proposed roles during the initial inquiry. Instructions, technical verification, draft approvals, language support, and expense authorization are confirmed before the engagement is accepted.
Discuss your APEX matter
Start with the public U.S. patent number, reported ASINs and product category, notice date, identified deadlines and time zones, and proposed contacts or local-counsel arrangements. Preserve the original notices and product evidence for later exchange through an agreed channel.
Initial contact: Brandon R. Theiss. Inquiries may be made in English or Chinese; the responsible professionals and language arrangements are confirmed before engagement.
Submit an APEX seller-defense inquiry →
brandon@divergentpatentlaw.com
Please provide only a nonconfidential overview at first contact. Do not send confidential information until an appropriate exchange channel is agreed. An inquiry or automated acknowledgment does not establish an attorney–client relationship or acceptance of a deadline. Engagement requires conflicts clearance and a written agreement. For an approaching deadline, also email and obtain express written acceptance from the responsible attorney.
Program sources
Program information checked October 24, 2026. The current written requirements of Amazon and the neutral evaluator control each matter. Fees are in U.S. dollars and remain subject to a written engagement confirming scope and terms.
Amazon Brand Registry: APEX, evaluator deposits, and APEX IDs
Amazon’s official APEX overview and eligibility guidance