Practicing IP Law Without a Technical Undergraduate Degree

Dear Lawcrossing,

I'm a second-year law student who is very much interested in pursuing a career as an intellectual property attorney, along either prosecution or defense lines. My problem, in a nutshell, is this: no technical degree. I'm not a technical illiterate; I've been using computers regularly for more than 10 years. But I've never set foot in a computer class, and my bachelor's degree is about as non-technical as they come.
 

The result of this common but apparently crippling malady is that I'm excluded from taking the Patent Bar exam-an exclusion which is often ending my job search at IP law firms before it even begins.

Is there any way to effectively combat this situation without returning to school for yet another two years after law school to earn a technical degree I neither want nor, God-willing, that I need?

JC, OrezjOKs

Dear Lawcrossing,

Help me! I'm a second-year in law school, and I would like to work in intellectual property. However, all of my previous experience is in criminal prosecution. Can you offer any advice on job search and interview (God-willing!) strategies?

CL, Los Angeles

Dear JC and CL,

Wffk Crippling malady, not having a technical under- BwA 8rad degree? Pshaw! Certainly you know LawCrossing well enough to know that there's no such thing as a crippling malady when it comes to finding your dream job. Annoying head colds, maybe, but certainly nothing worse than that.

What you want to get into, without perhaps realizing it, is what's known as "soft intellectual property." By this LawCrossing doesn't mean "easy" or that you have to be soft, but rather it's an area of intellectual property that does not require a technical undergraduate degree. Better yet, as the Director, Career Services Director at Franklin Pierce Law Center points out, "Tons of people do it!"

To differentiate soft intellectual property from, LawCrossing supposes, hard intellectual property, you are correct, JC, in pointing out that hard intellectual property requires a technical undergrad and passing the patent bar. Soft intellectual property, by contrast, involves "virtually any kind of intangible property," according to the Director. So, for instance, telecommu-nications law, and the wildly-popular Internet subset of that, would be considered soft intellectual property. As would trademarks and copyrights, and sometimes even sports and entertainment law, although sports and entertainment tend to focus more on contract issues.

LawCrossing suspects that having read that list of possibilities, you are champing at the bit with the question, "So, how do you break into these ultra-glamorous specialties?" In much the same way you'd break into any other specialty, namely: start working toward your goal right now. In school, seek out externships during the summer or even during winter break. Since many soft intellectual property specialties involve government agencies and other public interest-oriented organizations, the Director suggests that you sit down with a book like The Public Interest Law Guide that Harvard Law School puts out (your career services office probably has it) and get a feel for what's out there. LawCrossing knows that you cringe at this concept, but seriously consider volunteering in order to get experience. Work evenings at a restaurant, tutor, or do whatever you will in order to pay your bills, but when you want to enter fields as glamorous as these, any relevant experience gives you a tremendous advantage, both as a cre-dential and as an opportunity to meet people who can help usher you into the field.

Another option to consider in overcoming the lack of technical background is getting a joint degree (LawCrossing realizes that this is not particularly attractive to you, JC). Franklin Pierce, for instance, offers a Masters in Intellectual Property, in a tranquil New England setting to boot. LawCrossing emphasizes that you can break in without additional education, but having such a degree is obviously another arrow in your professional quiver.

LawCrossing cautions you that while her up-to- the-minute advice reflects the world as it exists today,

you will encounter many people who will try and dis-courage you, insisting that you need a technical background in order to get into intellectual property. As the Director points out, "Traditionally, intellectual property firms did require a technical degree. But the reality today is that they don't hire people just to do patents. They hire people to do trademarks and copyrights as well, and those don't require a technical degree."

So you have your marching orders, JC and CL. Find a subspecialty you like, and hunt down a part-time job or externship (paid or not). And as LawCrossing always counsels, become familiar with every publication in your chosen field, read about people and issues, and contact people you read about and authors whose articles you like, praising their work and asking their advice. Get on mailing lists in your dream specialty and go to every seminar and presentation you can find. In other words, pretend you're already doing what it is you dream of doing. And soon, very soon, you really will be starting your dream career-technical degree or not.

Search In-house intellectual property attorney jobs near Minneapolis location.

 

• See Top 10 Reasons Most Law Firms Have No Idea How to Hire and Evaluate Patent Attorneys for more information.