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Intellectual Property Lawyer

What To Learn

High School

What high school courses should you take if you're interested in this career? Get your answers from the Law, Public Safety, Corrections and Security cluster Legal Services pathway.

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Additional Information

Intellectual property lawyers go through training just like any other lawyer. Aspiring lawyers usually have a full four-year degree before starting law school. Then, they must write an aptitude test (the LSAT) to get into a three-year law degree program.

In university, they may decide to specialize in intellectual property law. But they'll probably get most of their experience when they work with a law firm geared to helping clients in those areas.

It's a good idea to earn a B.S. degree rather than a liberal arts degree if you want to be a patent lawyer. Most patent lawyers have a degree in engineering or the sciences.

"It's an area of the law that seems to be becoming increasingly harder and harder to get your foot in the door, just because a lot of the firms are looking for more and more specialists -- people with the requisite technical background," says IP lawyer Darryl Bilodeau. He has a degree in electrical engineering in addition to his law degree.

"That's why when you look at a lot of the announcements [of newly hired patent lawyers] posted by a lot of the IP firms, many of their new associates have graduate degrees in engineering or the sciences," Bilodeau adds.

IP lawyer Kenan Farrell agrees.

"In order to be a patent attorney you do have to have a science or engineering background, so that is crucial," says Farrell.

"But I do primarily copyright and trademark work, in which case you do not have to have really any particular background at all... but something like a business or marketing degree would be helpful for a lot of the issues that you encounter in a typical day-to-day IP practice."

Patent lawyers in the U.S. and Canada must take additional exams in order to practice patent law.

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OCAP believes that financial literacy and understanding the financial aid process are critical aspects of college planning and student success. OCAP staff who work with students, parents, educators and community partners in the areas of personal finance education, state and federal financial aid, and student loan management do not provide financial, investment, legal, and/or tax advice. This website and all information provided is for general educational purposes only, and is not intended to be construed as financial, investment, legal, and/or tax advice.