<p>I am currently an undergrad in Biomedical Engineering, and I am planning to get my masters after undergrad (4+1 type program). However, after that, I am planning to pursue IP/Patent law.</p>
<p>Is Law School necessary? </p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>While it's possible to become a lawyer without going to law school it is not recommended.</p>
<p>See this thread</p>
<p>To practice law, you normally have to attend law school and pass a state bar exam. A few states allow non-law school graduates to take the Bar exam, as discussed in the thread cited above, but this route is rare in practice.</p>
<p>However, it is possible to practice some aspects of patent law without going to law school or taking a state bar exam. Patents are a federal matter, and the US Patent and Trademark Office is a federal agency. So the USPTO can set its own standards for legal practice, independent of state bar associations. </p>
<p>The USPTO offers its own specialized legal exam, commonly known as the "Patent Bar". If you have an acceptable technical background (engineering degrees typically qualify), you can take the Patent Bar exam, whether or not you have a law degree. A lawyer who passes the USPTO exam becomes a "Patent Attorney"; a non-lawyer becomes a "Patent Agent". As far as the USPTO is concerned, both Patent Attorneys and Patent Agents have similar legal powers. </p>
<p>However, only a relatively narrow range of IP and patent issues are actually handled at the USPTO. For IP or patent issues handled in regular courtrooms, only the Patent Attorney has legal authority. In other words, the Patent Agent can legally address some specialized aspects of patent law related to the USPTO, but his scope is much more limited than that of a Patent Attorney.</p>
<p>See the the Wikipedia article on "Patent Attorneys" (which also addresses "Patent Agents")"</p>
<p>
[quote]
In the United States, a practitioner may either be a patent attorney or patent agent. Both patent attorneys and patent agents have the same license to represent clients before the Patent Office, part of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Both patent agents and patent attorneys may prepare, file, and prosecute patent applications for their clients before the Patent Office. Patent agents and patent attorneys may also provide patentability opinions
[/quote]
[quote]
Since patent attorneys are admitted to practice law in a state or territory, they can additionally provide legal services outside the Patent Office...These legal services include advising a client on matters relating to the licensing of the invention; whether to appeal a decision by the Patent Office to a court; whether to sue for infringement; whether someone is infringing upon the claims of a client's issued patent; and conversely, whether a client is infringing the claims of someone else's issued patent. Patent agents cannot provide legal services of this nature, nor can they represent clients before the Trademark Office part of the USPTO.
[/quote]
So yes, you can be a "Patent Agent" without attending law school. But no, you won't have as much legal authority as a "Patent Attorney" who did attend law school.</p>
<p>Do you guys think it would be worth while to spend the extra year getting a Masters if I know I want to go to law school?</p>
<p>For patent law, I think it is worthwhile to get an advanced degree. After you become a patent lawyer, your law degree will be the least important and the least considered of your degrees. It will be the wealth of your scientific knowledge that will set you apart.</p>
<p>Only if you were getting the MS cheap.</p>
<p>I do not recommend that someone who is still in college aim at becoming a patent agent rather than a patent attorney, as a career goal. While it is true that one can prepare and prosecute patent applications as a patent agent, without having attended law school, there is a very quick ceiling on career advancement (including salary) for patent agents. Once you are there, there is no further advancement in IP law. So if you, as a current college student, plan to enter the IP field, you need to think about law school. </p>
<p>Is it worth getting the M.S.? Probably. A Ph.D.? Not necessarily, in biomedical engineering, but helpful if it would be in biotech.</p>