St Louis Business Daily

Do intellectual property lawyers need an area of expertise in science/engineering?

I'm interested in intellectual property law (probably patents). I know that a lot of patent attorneys have previous degrees in engineering and science, and I do not. Could I still work as a patent attorney?

Public Comments

1. It depends. To be admitted to the us patent and trademark office you need to either have a specific degree (there is a list) or have enough credits in the sciences to be allowed to sit for the exam. However, other types of intellectual property (trademarks, copyrights) do not require a technical degree. Go to www.uspto.gov and look for the requirements to take the patent exam. Good Luck!