Intellectual Property, Job Searches

So You Want To Be An IP Lawyer Without A Technical Background (Part 2)

Getting a great IP job from... Craigslist? You never know where opportunities will arise.

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Not the only path to IP law.

Now that you’ve read Part 1, you are confident you can be an intellectual property attorney even if you don’t have a hard-sciences or engineering background. As I mentioned, being open to paths outside of Biglaw is tremendously helpful and can make it easier to pursue a career in IP, particularly when it comes to patent policy. So here are my tips for an IP, non-Biglaw job. (Note: I have never worked for Biglaw; I have spent my entire career in the public sector working for non-profit organizations and associations, so I wouldn’t be able to give you any law firm advice even if I wanted to.)

Where to look

After a brief stint doing immigration law, I figured out that I had no interest in direct services work and started focusing my applications in the policy space. One area that was always near and dear to my heart was access to affordable medicines and health care. My first job in the IP space dealt with access to essential medicines, particularly HIV/AIDS medicines, and the job therefore had a large patent policy element.

Where did I find this first IP job? Craigslist. I’m almost embarrassed to admit that I got my start in IP off of Craigslist, but there you have it. And it was a wonderful job in which I learned a lot, realized I was passionate about IP and its relationship to human rights and social justice issues, and led me to my next job, in which I got to work on copyright, patents and trade. While I don’t necessarily think that Craigslist is the ideal place to find an IP job, my point is that you never know where opportunities will arise.

The biggest piece of advice that I have, though, isn’t just for IP-job seekers, and that is: network, network, network. Don’t be afraid to talk to your law professors about your interests. Sign up for LinkedIn and see who in your network knows someone at an organization that you want to work at and ask if he or she will facilitate an introduction. Look at your alumni database and see if there’s anyone working in the IP space that could give you some advice. People who are working in this field will have a huge network that you can tap into, they will see job postings come across various listserves that you’re not on, and they may even be looking to hire at their own organizations. Get your name out there by blogging, tweeting, publishing, and meeting people at events.

While there are a number of job databases that you can join to search for jobs, generally, to be honest, I’ve found some of the more interesting ones on relevant blogs, listserves, and Twitter (follow people who are prominent in the IP space!). I would also frequently look at websites of organizations that pique your interest. One job site that is particularly relevant to those looking for IP and IP-related positions is IP Foundry.

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Narrowing focus

Just because you know that you want to work on a specific type of intellectual property law doesn’t mean you know exactly what field you may want to focus on. Sure, you could do patent or copyright litigation, in which case you’ll be encountering the world more broadly, but you may want to narrow your focus.

For example, if you’re interested in patents, you may find a deep interest in medicines issues, so an organization focusing on access to medicines or a medical device company may be good fits. Alternatively, green technology may interest you, so an environmental non-governmental organization or a solar panel company may hold your interest. Agriculture, genetic resources, self-driving cars — these are just a few of the different places you could focus your energies and your job search on.

Types of organizations

Now that you’re getting creative on where to search for that perfect IP job and (possibly) narrowing your focus, you should give some consideration to your prospective employer. There are host of options outside of law firms:

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Federal government. As someone who lives in Washington, D.C. and has always had a strong public interest motivation, I always think the federal government is a great place to look. Try the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Office of the United States Trade Representative, Copyright Office, Department of State, Department of Education, Institute of Museum and Library Sciences, National Institute of Health, Federal Drug Administration, Department of Health and Human Services, Smithsonian or the Library of Congress, just to name some of the agencies that have patent or copyright positions for attorneys. You can also look to work for a Senator or Congressman, or on a Committee, with IP in your portfolio.

Research organizations and think tanks. I have to assume that some portion of people who went to law school thoroughly enjoy research, so places where you can really dig into an issue, research your heart out, and write reports about IP might be a good fit. Check out different institutes to see if any of their focus areas might lend themselves to IP-related research.

Companies and startups. A couple of my former interns now work at startup companies or established companies. While they may not be the easiest jobs to get, there are quite a few copyright- and patent-licensing attorney positions in a range of fields, from brand-name pharmaceutical companies and generic firms, technology and software companies (including social media platforms), to movie studios and streaming services, just to name a few. Not only will they have licensing positions, but they typically also have a government relations/policy person who either focuses exclusively on intellectual property or has it in his portfolio.

Non-profit organizations. Here’s where I have the greatest experience. There are tons of non-profit organizations looking for attorneys — either to work on legal or policy issues, or both — who understand intellectual property. There are big organizations like Médecins sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders that work on access to medicines issues, to well-established organizations like the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) that primarily work on user rights in the digital environment, to much smaller and narrowly focused organizations like Benetech, which promotes global literacy and accessibility.

Trade associations. I currently work at an association, and there are a number of different ones out there, from ones representing non-profits, to ones representing big and small companies. The Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA), the Association of American Publishers (AAP), Business Software Alliance (BSA), Entertainment Software Association (ESA), Consumer Technology Association (CTA), Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) and the American Library Association (ALA) are just a few of the large associations representing a variety of fields and viewpoints. Research the area that you’re interested in and see what associations represent that industry. Most typically have a legal counsel’s office as well as a government relations/policy team.

Universities and colleges. Universities all have a general counsel’s office that works on a range of issues. Some have ones focusing almost exclusively on intellectual property, including protecting the trademark of the school or handling technology transfer agreements for inventions developed at the school. A number of university libraries have a copyright specialist, often someone who holds a J.D. and Masters in Library Science, or just a J.D. and keen interest in the public-interest mission of a library.

Law school clinics. There a number of law school clinics focusing on one or more aspects of intellectual property. Some are more policy-focused, others regulatory-focused, and others representing clients in litigation. These clinics typically hire clinical faculty to oversee student work, and most clinical professors I know are deeply invested in these issues themselves.

Foundations. Most of those non-profits that work on intellectual property issues get money through funding from foundations. At the big foundations (think: MacArthur, Gates or Open Society), someone who is well versed in the substantive issues they are funding is usually on staff. Figure out where the organizations you are interested in working for might have opportunities.

I’ve focused primarily on finding IP jobs in the United States thus far. In a future post, I’ll discuss some tips on finding a job that focuses on international intellectual property issues.

Earlier: So You Want To Be An IP Lawyer Without A Technical Background (Part 1)

Krista L. Cox is a policy attorney who has spent her career working for non-profit organizations and associations. She has expertise in copyright, patent, and intellectual property enforcement law, as well as international trade. She currently works for a non-profit member association advocating for balanced copyright. You can reach her at kristay@gmail.com.

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