How to Become a Patent Lawyer

Patent law is a challenging field of work and a great choice for people with a strong sense of technology and impeccable verbal skills. Patent lawyers represent their clients and are responsible for filing the patents for them. They also provide legal advice to manufacturers and investors on patents. Becoming a patent lawyer takes a formidable education and training. Let us know more about how to become a patent lawyer.

Educational Requirements and Training
An aspiring candidate should have a bachelor's degree in the field of science or engineering. Some of the bachelor degrees that one can take up before joining the law school are

• Biology
• Biochemistry
• Microbiology
• Electrical engineering
• Communication technology
• Civil engineering
• Mechanical engineering
• Chemical engineering

As you can see, all these degrees are in the science and technology fields. Candidates who have earned their bachelor's degrees in other fields and still aspire to be a patent lawyer, provided they have earned specific number of credits. Depending upon your bachelor's degree, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) puts you under three categories; A, B and C.

After completing the bachelor's degree, a candidate has to clear the law entrance examination. One needs to get good ratings in this examination as it is very crucial for getting a good recommendation to specific law schools. Most of the law schools have three-year courses and in the first year, the students are taught constitutional law, civil procedure and property laws. In the second year, the students can choose their own legal interests. Students who are interested in becoming a patent lawyer study entertainment law, intellectual property law, copyright law, trademark law, antitrust law etc.

Students can also get a real experience of patent law cases by applying for internships at the US court of Appeals. Students can also take up advanced courses in the patent law field to enhance their prospects while applying for jobs. There are certain law schools in the United States which attract millions of applications every year, but unfortunately as the seats are quite limited, only some thousand students are able to make the cut. Let us take a look at some of the best law schools in America.

1. Yale Law School
2. Harvard Law School
3. Stanford Law School
4. Columbia University School of Law
5. University of Chicago Law School
6. New York University School of Law
7. University of Pennsylvania Law School
8. The University of Michigan Law School
9. University of California-Berkeley Law School
10. University of Virginia School of Law

Students who are interested in being a patent lawyer should know that perseverance and determination are the qualities to ensure success in this field. We hope that this article helps you in getting a brief idea about how to become a patent lawyer.