Patent Engineer

As a patent engineer, you sit at the middle of innovation and the law. You help inventors and companies prove that their ideas are truly new and deserve legal protection. You need to understand the technology - how it works, what problem it solves, what makes it different - but also know the law that protects inventions.

Your work starts by searching through what already exists (thousands of patents and publications) to make sure your client's invention really is original. Then you help write the patent application - explaining the technical details in a way that's clear and convincing to patent examiners. You'll work closely with inventors to translate their ideas into legal language, and you'll give advice on whether something can actually be patented and what its worth might be. When examiners challenge the application, you figure out how to argue back and defend it. It's detective work, writing, strategy and technology all mixed together - and every patent you help protect is an idea that someone can keep building on.