Job Responsibilities
I work with inventors -- everything from solo inventors to major
corporations or research institutions -- in preparing patents for
their inventions. This involves: (a) initially meeting with an
inventor to have the inventor explain what the invention is, (b)
distilling down the information from the inventor, to highlight
what is new over what has been done before, and (c) defending the
invention at the patent office, and persuading the patent office
that the invention deserves to be patented. Occasionally, I work
on lawsuit-related tasks, such as analyzing a particular patent in
light of a specific product, etc. I not involved when someone
actually sues someone else, so I don't end up in a court room
arguing in front of a judge or a jury.
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Job Requirements
To write patent applications, one needs to pass the "patent bar"
exam. In order to take the exam, one generally must have a
science or engineering degree. (For a list of degrees and more
information, search google for "patent and trademark office" and
"general requirements bulletin.") One need not go to law school,
but some employers (particularly large law firms) prefer you
eventually go to law school. Many firms with this requirement
will pay for your law school tuition.
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Uppers
First, the money is extremely good. In a large law firm, a patent lawyer fresh
out of law school will earn a minimum of $125K / yr (maximum I've heard is $155K
/ yr), plus bonuses.
Also, the work is often interesting, if you enjoy technology. You will work
with inventors, so necessarily you're seeing new stuff every day. In that
regard, do NOT go into patent law if the technical aspects of science or
engineering do not suit you. To survive in patent law, you need a certain amount
of intellectual curiosity.
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Downers
The main downer is law firm culture/law firm economics. By
"culture," I don't mean that you won't personally get along with
your co-workers. (At my firm, in fact, quite the opposite.) I
mean that as a lawyer, you exist to bill time, in six minute
increments. You will become extremely sensitive to this fact.
Most law firms have an annual "billable hours" requirement to
remain in good standing, so there's always a pressure to bill. On
the other hand, most clients have an expectation that work should
be done in a certain price range. The price range often does not
allow you to explore the technology as much as you'd like to do a
good job.
Even if you don't care about doing a good job, the hours are still
pretty long, at least at large law firms. Large law firms
typically require about 1900-2000 billable hours per year. As a
rule of thumb, you can bill about 80% of the time you spend at
work. Combine that with some mandatory but non-billable meetings,
and you get the picture... long hours.
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Lifestyle
At my large law firm, the lifestyle is to work. This sounds more miserable than
it actually is. My co-workers are generally friendly and helpful, and the work
itself is interesting. There is some business travel, either meet inventors or
perhaps to Washington DC to conduct business at the patent office (infrequent).
Most law firms have regular social events, from holiday parties to hosting
conferences, etc. Dress code is business casual, for all but the stuffiest firms
I've heard of. There is decent race, gender, and sexual orientation diversity at
my firm. Probably a firm by firm issue.
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Compensation
Excellent compensation virtually everywhere. Check
www.nalpdirectory.com for more information.
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Advice to Jobseekers
One warning. The job that I described above is not easily
obtained. Many smart, qualified students who focussed on patent
law in school do not end up finding work in patent law. To
maximize your chances of getting the job after law school, go to
the best ranked law school you can. Law school rankings mean very
little in terms of the quality of education you receive, but the
unfortunate truth is that law firms still tend to hire more from
1st tier schools than 4th tier schools. From the hiring partner's
perspective: "Here are 500 resumes that I'm never going to read,
because I don't bill anybody for it. If I keep only the top-tier
schools, I'm down to 100." To be sure, this is a simplification,
but you get the idea.
Also, the rule of thumb is that for life sciences, you should have
a PhD in your technology to have a chance of getting a decent job.
For other engineers (computer, electrical, mechanical), a
bachelor's suffices. I'm not sure what the latest thinking on
chemical-types is these days.
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