This article is contributed by Lea Polito, a 2L at UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law. In order to practice before the United States Patent & Trademark Office in a representative capacity, one must pass the USPTO Registration Exam, also known as the Patent Bar Exam. Only those with a bachelor’s degree or equivalent training in a technical field are eligible to take the exam. Upon passing the exam, a person is registered as a Patent Agent and may represent clients before the USPTO in the prosecution of patents. Thus, passing the Patent Bar is necessary for all patent attorneys who wish to work in patent prosecution. For patent attorneys solely practicing in litigation, passing the patent bar is not required; as such, attorneys without the requisite technical background may still work in patent litigation. Passing the exam is considered a significant accomplishment due to the difficulty of the exam, as demonstrated by the low passing rate. Thus, passing the exam can be a valuable addition to your resume, and is a great way to indicate an interest in patent law to future employers. I decided to share my experience with studying and passing the Patent Bar as a 1L student, as well as my reflections on whether or not it is generally best to take the exam before entering practice. I fully acknowledge that everyone learns and studies differently, so I cannot guarantee that my approach will work for everyone, nor do I claim that my approach is the best or “right way” to study. However, I’m hoping that this post may provide a starting point for current and future UNH law students in making an informed decision on whether or not to take the exam. I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering in May of 2020, so I had the requisite technical background to take the exam upon graduation, but no prior knowledge of patent law. While attending Admitted Students Day at the law school earlier that spring, I learned that the school often runs group discounts for PLI’s Patent Bar prep course, which is highly regarded and can greatly improve the chances of passing the exam. With little to do that summer given that we were in peak COVID lockdown, I decided to study for the exam shortly after graduating, and I planned to take the exam right before starting law school.
Generally, I had a very positive experience with taking PLI. I worked through the course by reading the study guide before watching the corresponding lectures. I found that the repetition between reading and then watching the lectures, albeit time-consuming, really helped commit the material to memory. While reading, I made flash cards of all of the exam points that were written in boxes or otherwise flagged as important in the study guide. I also made a document where I kept track of every question from the study guide and the practice exams that I got wrong, and wrote explanations for why my answers were wrong and why the correct answers were better. For me personally, I found this method of studying through repetition, memorization, and reviewing my wrong answers in detail to be very effective. I took the exam right after Labor Day in 2020, so I studied for about three and a half months. I worked a part-time retail job on the side, so I estimate that I studied part-time as well, averaging about 20 hours per week. I suggest tailoring a study schedule around your individual circumstances. For example, I think it is definitely possible to pass the exam by studying more hours per day over a shorter time period, perhaps a month or two. I think it’s also feasible to pass the exam while working full-time, as long as you allow yourself to study over more months in order to make up for shorter time blocks of studying per day. If one thing is for certain, it’s that taking the exam is not a fun experience, so try not to rush with studying and take as much time as you need to pass on the first try. From my experience, there are both pros and cons of taking the exam early on in law school. Passing the exam before applying to summer internships was a huge advantage in getting my resume noticed by employers, and I highly doubt that I would have gotten my summer position without it. Also, studying for the exam was a great way to transition from studying engineering to studying law. My patent bar studying was really useful for learning to read statutes and regulations for the first time, and I gained a solid background understanding of patent law that has helped with the patent courses I have taken thus far. It’s also nice to have it out of the way early, so that I can solely focus on passing the regular bar exam after graduation. However, taking the exam later can have benefits as well. For example, many attorneys at my firm think that waiting to take the exam until after gaining some practical experience makes the exam much easier. One attorney in my group passed the exam after studying over the course of a week-long beach vacation in Florida because he already had extensive knowledge of patent law from his practical experiences clerking and working at the firm. Additionally, the PLI course and exam fees are extremely expensive, and many employers are willing to pay for these expenses if you wait to take the exam until after entering practice. Finally, given that the exam is a huge investment and time commitment, I recommend waiting to take the exam until you are absolutely certain that you want to work with patents, particularly in patent prosecution. To summarize, my answer to the question “When, and how, should I go about studying for the Patent Bar?” is the classic law school answer: it depends.
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