About the attorney

I'm Sergei Tokmakov, the California attorney behind Terms.Law.

I'm licensed in California (CA Bar #279869, since 2011) and Washington (WA Bar #65720, 2026). I'm the only attorney behind Terms.Law -- no firm, no junior associates, no handoffs. Every demand letter, contract review, and pro se filing package on this site is drafted by me personally.

14+
Years in practice
1,500+
Contracts drafted
700+
Upwork reviews
100%
Job-success score

Background and credentials

I earned my J.D. from Boston University School of Law and was admitted to the California Bar in 2011 and the Washington State Bar in September 2026 (WSBA #65720). I've practiced continuously since then, with my work concentrated on transactional contract drafting and California-specific litigation-precursor work (demand letters, pro se filing packages, settlement negotiation).

Outside of Terms.Law, I'm a long-tenured top-rated freelancer on Upwork with over 700 client reviews and a 100% job-success score across more than a decade. That's where most of my pre-Terms.Law contract work happened, and the reviews are public if you want to read what other clients have said about my work.

I read and write Russian fluently in addition to English, which is why a meaningful share of Terms.Law's demand-letter library is also available in Russian translations.

What I work on

My practice is intentionally narrow. I do a small number of things well rather than a wide menu of services I'd refer out anyway. Roughly in order of volume on Terms.Law:

California demand letters ($1,200 flat)
Demand letter plus draft lawsuit ($1,200)
Contract review and revision ($750)
Pro se filing packages ($1,250)
SaaS legal stacks (MSA + TOS + Privacy + DPA + AI)
AI implementation reviews for law firms
LLC and corporation formation (DE, WY, CA)
Trader tax 475(f) election strategy
Landlord-tenant disputes (Cal. Civ. Code 789.3, 1941, 1950.5)
Wage and hour / penalty claims (Cal. Labor Code)
Insurance bad-faith claims
EEOC retaliation and discrimination matters

How I work

Written intake, always

I work in writing -- email and the Terms.Law forms. I do not run discovery calls, kickoff calls, or "let me hop on a quick Zoom." Written intake is faster, easier to revisit, easier to audit, and easier for you to forward to a partner or accountant. If you genuinely need a phone conversation, I offer a paid $300 Written Attorney Consultation (or hourly at $300) -- but the vast majority of my matters never need one.

Flat-fee pricing, posted

Every service has a public price ($1,200 demand letter, $750 contract drafting / redline, $1,200 letter plus draft lawsuit, $1,250 pro se filing package, and so on). No retainers. No billable-hour surprises. If a matter is genuinely outside my standard scope, I quote in writing before any work starts.

Same-business-day turnaround on most letters

Demand letters typically go out same business day if you submit before noon Pacific, next business day otherwise. Contract reviews turn around in 24-48 hours. Pro se packages take 3-5 business days.

Direct attorney work, no handoffs

I do the drafting. There is no firm-letterhead pretense, no junior associate doing the first pass, no paralegal handling the file. You pay an attorney rate because you get an attorney's work product.

What I take -- and what I won't

What I take

  • California-nexus demand letters (one target, one letter)
  • Contract drafting and redline review
  • Pro se filing packages for small-claims and limited-civil matters
  • SaaS / AI / fintech legal stacks for funded startups
  • AI implementation and ethics audits for professional-services firms
  • Business formation in DE, WY, and CA
  • Written case-evaluation memos before you commit to a path

What I will not take

  • Criminal defense (any jurisdiction)
  • Immigration matters
  • Contested family-law / divorce / custody
  • Matters with no California nexus that need state-court work in another state
  • Multi-target / multi-letter campaigns at the $1,200 single-letter price
  • Anything contingency-fee. Flat fee or hourly only.
  • "Just review this and tell me if I should sue" without a written intake first

Why Terms.Law exists

Most California residents and small businesses with a real legal problem cannot afford traditional billable-hour representation. A $1,200 attorney-drafted demand letter that cites the right statute and runs out of certified mail on attorney letterhead very often resolves the matter without anyone ever filing suit. That's the gap I built Terms.Law to fill.

The free tools on the site -- calculators, template generators, AI Legal Analyst chat, forum, blog -- exist so that people with a question can get a real answer without paying for one. If your situation needs an attorney, the paid services are right there. If it doesn't, you walk away with something useful.

How to reach me

Email: owner@terms.law. That's the canonical channel. I do not publish a phone number for general intake -- written communication is faster and produces a record you can refer back to.

For matter-specific intake, the better entry points are the service pages below, which include the intake forms tailored to each service. Submissions through the forms route directly to me and trigger an email plus Telegram ping so I see them within minutes.

You do not need a free call to decide whether I can help. The pages, tools, workroom previews, and package descriptions show how I approach these matters. For individualized review, analysis, drafting, or strategy, start with a fixed-fee package or paid consultation.

Have a California legal problem?

Send me the facts in writing. I read every intake.

Disclaimer. This page describes me, my credentials, and how I work. It is informational and does not constitute legal advice. Reading this page or contacting me through Terms.Law does not create an attorney-client relationship. An attorney-client relationship begins only after I confirm in writing that I'm accepting a specific matter and we have a signed engagement agreement. For specific legal guidance on your situation, consult a licensed attorney.