The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), which is the licensing authority for patent law professionals, gives limited recognition to people who have passed the FE exam. They do not give any recognition for passing the PE or PLS exams.
Yes, yes, and yes, but it's not that simple. Read on.
35 U.S.C. 33 states: "Whoever,
not being recognized to practice before the Patent and Trademark Office, holds
himself out or permits himself to be held out as so recognized, or as being
qualified to prepare or prosecute applications for patent, shall be fined not
more than $1000 for each offense." Title 37 of the Code of Federal Regulations
defines what constitutes practice. 37 CFR 10.34 states: "A registered practitioner
may state or imply that the practitioner is a specialist as follows:
(a) a registered practitioner who is an attorney may use the designation, 'Patents',
'Patent Attorney', 'Patent Lawyer', 'Registered Patent Attonrey, or a substantially
similar designation.
(b) A registered practitioner who is not an attorney may use the designation
'Patents', 'Patent Agent', 'Registered Patent Agent', or a substantially similar
designation, except that any practitioner who was registered prior to November
15, 1938, may refer to himself or herself as a 'Patent Attorney'."
Yes, but they are legally practicing law unlicensed by any state bar. Because they are appointed by the USPTO, which is an arm of the U.S. federal government (Dept. of Commerce), the state laws regulating the practice of law are effectively overruled by federal law. The relevant test case of federal supremacy jurisdiction overruling specific state regulations was Sperry vs. The State of Florida. Note, however, that patent agents can counsel and represent clients only in connection with civil service administrative hearings, not before judges.
Opinions vary widely. Patent agents tend to be rather passionate about their work--you either love patent law work or you hate it. There is less age discrimination among patent agents than is found in engineering. Patent work tends to be located in relatively few places--the East Coast (Boston through Washington, DC), the West Coast, a large area around Chicago, and a few other smaller pockets. There are roughly 2,000 patent agents in the U.S. and roughly 20,000 patent attorneys.
Patent agents may not be seen as "equals" by patent attorneys.
Being a patent agent requires scrupulous attention to detail and excellent communication skills. Don't even think of a career as a patent agent if dealing with civil servants leaves you feeling frustrated and angry.
Yes, but most work is available from four areas: chemical, electrical, mechanical, and biotechnological.
Very few patent attorneys are PEs. There are a number of patent agents who are PEs, but generally, the vast majority of agents and attorneys never gain the technical expertise and experience to qualify for the PE exam. There seems to be a big need for highly technical patent attorneys.
Migration from patent agent to patent attorney is simple. First, you have to pass the state bar exam. Then, you provide a good standing letter from the state bar and pay a fee. The USPTO will then provide you with a new certificate and will update their online database to indicate attorney status.
You apply to the USPTO to take the "patent bar" exam (officially, the Examination for Registration to Practice in Parent Cases Before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office), pass the exam, and pay the fees. If you are an accomplished engineer who has never been to law school, the process might take an average of two years from start to finish--assuming you are concurrently holding down a full time job. An expenditure of several thousand dollars may be involved. The absolute minimum time and money would be around nine months and several hundred dollars, but such an achievement would be unusual.
The typical pass rate is around 40%. A typical candidate might put in a total of roughly 300 to 400 hours of study directed specifically to the exam.
Over the years, it's been held once or twice each year. The USPTO seems to be settled on twice a year, but this may change with minimal notice.
The exam is given in many cities throughout the United States. More information is available in the USPTO publication entitled, "Examination for Registration to Practice in Patent Cases Before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office."
Recent exams have been all multiple choice, but essay questions have also been used in the past. The USPTO can, and has, changed the exam format without notice. Currently, there are two three-hour sessions, each with 50 multiple-choice questions. The subject matter is patent law and USPTO procedures. A typical question might be to determine (from a fact pattern) the exact deadline for filing a particular form in connection with an application for a patent.
You need a cummulative score of 70 to pass.
Copies of old examinations
can be purchased from the Office of Enrollment and Discipline at the following
address:
Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks, Box OED, Washinton, DC 20231.
You do not need to be a lawyer
or law student to take the exam. You have to submit an application and pay the
fee. You must be over 18, not a convicted criminal, and either a US citizen,
a Canadian citizen, or a US permanent resident (green card holder). You also
need to have done one of the following:
A. earned a technical bachelor's degree that is on the USPTO list of approved
degrees, OR
B. taken a collection of semester hours of certain subjects at certain colleges
according to a horrendously complicated formula, OR
C. passed the FE exam (hurrah!), OR
D. convinced the USPTO by petition that justice requires them to waive the above
requirements in your case. A petition may be filed under 37 CFR Section 10.170
for this purpose.
See option D directly above.
See the USPTO web site. Search for "REGISTRATION EXAMINATION FOR PATENT ATTORNEYS AND AGENTS".
No.
In the absence of having worked drafting patent claims and amendments to patent applications in a patent law firm or in the patent law division of a corporation, a review course is highly recommended. Review courses typically last a week.
It is not necessary to have a law degree in order to work as an examiner with the USPTO. Applicants are generally required to hold a BS degree with a major in a scientific or engineering subject. (Contact the USPTO for its current technical requirements.)
Try these:
The above information is based on information that was provided by Henry Black, P.E., Patent Agent, and Dr. Kevin Mark Klughart, PE, Patent Attorney. The information is believed to be correct but is not legal advice and should not be relied upon without independent verification. Permission is granted to make verbatim copies for personal use. Derivative works are prohibited. Any form of distribution except distribution by PPI is prohibited. PPI was not involved in the production of this article and accepts no responsibility for it.
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