Patent Drafting Article

Jun 27

Patent Drafting

In the simplest of terms, patent drafting jobs means just that, drafting patent applications for inventors so that they could present them for approval with United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) or similar bodies (in other nations). But, before delving more into the patent drafting jobs, let us see first what actually a patent is all about.

Technically, a patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state/country to the patentee for his/her invention, for a fixed period of time, in exchange of a disclosure of the concerned invention. Usually, the time period is for twenty years during which the patentee will hold exclusive rights for his/her invention. Others won’t have the rights to reproduce, use, develop, selling, offering or importing the invention during that period.

Mostly it is the companies/manufacturers in competitive domains that usually apply promptly for patents for their inventions as there is a chance of the immediate competitors stealing or improvising on the idea and implementing it themselves.

Now, coming back to patent drafting jobs, it requires good skills, ideally a combination of technical background and a base in law, and lots of practice to draft applications. In a sense, it is back breaking and mind numbing as well. Every patent draft takes numerous prior art searches, comparisons, technology and patentability assessment, patent claim mapping, patent proof reading, drafting response to objections by patent examiners, and rereading before it eventually could reach the shape of a complete patent application that can be submitted to USPTO or equivalent offices in other countries for consideration.

Every draft, it would take days to complete, and as mentioned above, the job is quite draining as well. But the silver lining is that it pays handsomely for drafting a single patent application. In US, law firms quote as high as $15,000 for preparing and filing a patent application with USPTO. So, if you are a freelance certified patent agent, you could also make the same money by offering your services to inventors worldwide.

The best way to get into the world of patent drafting jobs by securing an internship job in some law firm that deals with patents, while you are in your school. But, in order to officially certify a patent draft, one needs to be a certified patent agent (in other words, has to pass the patent agent exam). The details about how to become a certified patent agent, it is available in the web. Once cleared that hurdle, and with adequate expertise in prior art search, invention analysis, drafting, and other intricacies of the job, you can start offering consultancy services or begin a firm of your own that deals with IP. Either way, it will pay you more than most conventional and non technical (even technical) jobs.