Why did you choose a job in this profession?
Learning about how technologies work has always fascinated me, especially when seemingly unrelated ideas are brought together to solve a problem or create something new. Coming from a background in Physics, I find digital technologies in particular incredibly fun to learn about. Separately, I had also become interested in intellectual property law. Patent law ended up being a perfect combination of these, and I was excited by the idea that this was a career pathway I could pursue with my degree.
What was the application process like – any advice?
The application process was fairly straight forward. After submitting a CV and covering letter, I was invited to an online interview. Before the interview I was given a short (and fictional) patent to review, along with a couple of brief questions about the invention. The interview itself was split between discussing my answers to these questions and more standard interview questions. Being able to explain my Master’s project well was definitely something they were looking out for. After that I was invited to an in-person interview. I was asked a lot of questions about 3D animation software, a hobby I had mentioned, because it gave the interviewers another chance to see how well I could explain complex, technical concepts.
Some firms I applied to used online tests, similar to the written questions in my first interview. Others required applications to include a technical description of a household item, a pair of scissors or a can opener etc., which is harder than it sounds but gets you thinking like a patent attorney. Another firm that I had interviewed with handed me a special type of wrench and gave me half an hour to figure out how it worked. They then asked me questions about its function, benefits over other wrenches, and how it might be manufactured.
What are your main duties?
Most of my work so far has been writing responses to search and exam reports from the patent office. A patent examiner will review one of our patent applications and try to determine if the invention is new and inventive, or if the idea had already been disclosed elsewhere. They also check to make sure that the application is clear and follows all of the appropriate guidelines. Any objections they have are written in a search report and sent back to us. My job is then to go through their objections and decide if we can argue against them or have to amend the application to resolve the issue. I would then write a response to the examiner with these arguments or amendments. If the examiner is satisfied with the response, then the patent would progress to grant. If they feel my response is insufficient, the process would repeat with another report and response.
What skills are useful in this profession?
Attention to detail is definitely a key trait to have. Being able to tease out small differences between your application and what came before, as well as searching through an application for the one sentence that really gets at the core idea of the invention, are important skills to develop. It’s also useful to be able to quickly get a grasp on complex, technical ideas and then explain them in ways that are easy for others to understand. Quick learning is also highly useful. As a trainee you aren’t expected to know all the details of patent law from the start, but being able to rapidly pick up on key ideas definitely helps as you progress through the profession.
