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How can I maximize my time and efforts during law school in order to become a well-prepared attorney in patent law? #Spring25
I am a high school senior planning to attend UC Berkeley as an English major for my undergraduate studies in the fall. I am also an aspiring patent lawyer who has a plethora of questions considering most have my family has never gone to college, and I am pioneering higher education for us all. I love English, philosophy, statistics, and governmental affairs classes.
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Karin’s Answer
Hi Sara,
It's wonderful that you want to become a patent lawyer. It's a well-paid profession that will be in demand in the future. You will need a different education though.
Patents are given on technical inventions or designs. In order to judge a patent application, you need a technical or scientific degree in the field you want to be a patent lawyer for or an art/design degree. There are lists of which degrees are eligible to sit the patent bar exam (see link below).
On the road to become a patent lawyer, you first need to earn a bachelors in science or engineering (for sciency/technical inventions) or a bachelors in arts or design (for design patents).
You then take the LSAT and apply to law school.
After law school, you need to pass the bar exam to become a lawyer and the patent bar to become a patent lawyer. You can then register with the USPTO.
I hope this helps! All the best to you!
KP
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/how-to-become-patent-attorney
https://www.patenteducationseries.com/exam/qualifications.html
It's wonderful that you want to become a patent lawyer. It's a well-paid profession that will be in demand in the future. You will need a different education though.
Patents are given on technical inventions or designs. In order to judge a patent application, you need a technical or scientific degree in the field you want to be a patent lawyer for or an art/design degree. There are lists of which degrees are eligible to sit the patent bar exam (see link below).
On the road to become a patent lawyer, you first need to earn a bachelors in science or engineering (for sciency/technical inventions) or a bachelors in arts or design (for design patents).
You then take the LSAT and apply to law school.
After law school, you need to pass the bar exam to become a lawyer and the patent bar to become a patent lawyer. You can then register with the USPTO.
I hope this helps! All the best to you!
KP
Karin recommends the following next steps:
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Kent’s Answer
Congratulations on UC Berkeley, my wife attended the same school for undergraduate and really enjoyed it. We both went to law school, she was a legal studies major and did law related to financial institutions. I studied electrical engineering as an undergraduate and became a patent lawyer. Both areas of practice are interesting.
Most people practicing patent law have science/engineering degrees. In order to be registered as a g attorney, the United States Patent Office requires that you have a minimum number of science credits in your undergraduate studies. It's a very practical requirement, patent lawyers draft the documents that protect an invention. Thus the patent lawyer needs to understand the invention, how it works, and write a document that looks almost like a technical specification.
Registered patent attorney handle the drafting and filing of patent applications. However, as pointed out in other answers, there are other areas of intellectual property law such as copyrights and trademarks. Furthermore, if what you are interested in is patent litigation (appearing in court to arguing about whether someone is using a patent), you do not have to be a registered patent attorney. I know many great patent litigators who do not have formal technical backgrounds. However, even there, they still need to understand the technology being litigated so some technical background is helpful.
Best wishes on your journey. English, statistics, and government affairs are all great preparations for law school. If you like technology and want to handle the drafting and filing of patent applications, it would be best to obtain a technical degree. If you want to practice in other areas, patent litigation, copyrights, and/or trademarks, you will have a bit more flexibility. Either way, it is an exciting field and the job opportunities are also very good.
Most people practicing patent law have science/engineering degrees. In order to be registered as a g attorney, the United States Patent Office requires that you have a minimum number of science credits in your undergraduate studies. It's a very practical requirement, patent lawyers draft the documents that protect an invention. Thus the patent lawyer needs to understand the invention, how it works, and write a document that looks almost like a technical specification.
Registered patent attorney handle the drafting and filing of patent applications. However, as pointed out in other answers, there are other areas of intellectual property law such as copyrights and trademarks. Furthermore, if what you are interested in is patent litigation (appearing in court to arguing about whether someone is using a patent), you do not have to be a registered patent attorney. I know many great patent litigators who do not have formal technical backgrounds. However, even there, they still need to understand the technology being litigated so some technical background is helpful.
Best wishes on your journey. English, statistics, and government affairs are all great preparations for law school. If you like technology and want to handle the drafting and filing of patent applications, it would be best to obtain a technical degree. If you want to practice in other areas, patent litigation, copyrights, and/or trademarks, you will have a bit more flexibility. Either way, it is an exciting field and the job opportunities are also very good.
Updated
Daniel’s Answer
Hi Sara, as a patent practitioner, I can say this is a wonderful career. I will also echo the previous answer in that it does require a science or engineering degree. I would say electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, are great, in-demand technical backgrounds.
If you are not interested in an engineering degree, you can still become an intellectual property attorney and instead focus on copyrights or trademarks which do not require a technical background. These areas are considered "soft IP" as opposed to patent law which is considered "hard IP."
As for success in law school, I would say organization is critical. The subject matter isn't terribly difficult to learn, it is the volume of the work and the amount of reading that is the challenge. If you can master your day-to-day schedule, you'll do great!
If you are not interested in an engineering degree, you can still become an intellectual property attorney and instead focus on copyrights or trademarks which do not require a technical background. These areas are considered "soft IP" as opposed to patent law which is considered "hard IP."
As for success in law school, I would say organization is critical. The subject matter isn't terribly difficult to learn, it is the volume of the work and the amount of reading that is the challenge. If you can master your day-to-day schedule, you'll do great!