Re: Best Route to Become a Biotech Patent Attorney?

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On 6/04/04, Dirk wrote:
> Hi all, I am going to be a senior next year, majoring in
> Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Penn State
> University, and I have a keen interest in going on to
> become a biotech patent attorney. I've read many many
> statements and articles recomending pHD's for biotech
> patent attorneys, so the way I see it I have the option of
> going to get a pHD, then go to law school, or try to get
> into a joint degree JD/pHD program. Could someone please
> comment on the effectiveness and utility of these joint
> degree programs? Another idea I have been playing with, has
> been to go into industry immediately after receiving a
> bachelor's degree, using them to attain a Master's, then
> transfer to the law department and use them to attain a JD
> and some work experience. Could someone please comment on
> the attractiveness of a patent attorney with a Masters and
> several years industry experience? Thanks a great deal for
> your advice.

Patentable software invention and mechanical inventions are
just as likely to come from a guy (or gal) working in
his/her basement or garage as they are to come from a
Fortune 500 corporation. Only the corporate in-house
attorneys who will hire you on behalf of their corporation
will be unduly concerned with your credentials. Even then
it is the quality of work and reputation (measured as
timeliness, answering phone calss, fees charged, and ease of
prosecution) that you produce is what matters to keep or get
them as clients. Since you will likely work for a law firm,
the law firm will have already established quality and
reputation and your job will be to keep to the same
standard. In other words, the account partner has little
trouble selling you to them.

To achieve a patentable biotech invention requires several
million dollars worth of equipment and probably one or two
PhD's. This effectively leaves all but "theoretical"
inventions to the corporate players. Here, the partner will
have to sell you on your biotech knowledge (I am assuming
you are interested in the biological end of biotech
(sequencing etc.) as opposed to some software or hardware
invention). Having a Masters is likely not enough. Even
when you have work experience, it's difficult to sell it as
a good well of experience to draw on. Nothing speaks louder
than a PhD with a JD from a top 10 school.

I keep hearing that the next patent run a la software in the
90's will be biotech. I doubt it. Biotech is a game for
the corporate players.