How to Become an Intellectual Property Lawyer

Intellectual property lawyers deal with the area of law concerned with protecting works of original authorship, sometimes called “intellectual capital.” They handle disputes about copyright (via litigation, if necessary) and create the contracts that control how copyrighted works are used.

• Go to law school. Like any other specialty in law, an IP lawyer must attend law school, which will include scoring well on the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) and completing the course of study. Typically a law student’s course of study is 3 years long and graduate with a law degree. Most schools will require that a law student have a bachelor’s degree in order to admit them.
  
  


• Take the right courses while in law school. For the purposes of practicing intellectual property law, a student will need to have knowledge of such legal areas as antitrust law, patent law and copyright law. They will also be required to spend a lot of time writing; therefore, writing skills will be necessary.
  
  


• Complete an internship or clerkship. In most, this will be required by the law school. In an internship, the law student will acquire valuable on-the-job training to prepare them for their legal career. Clerkships are usually reserved for students who perform exceptionally. They will serve as a law clerk for a judge, usually on the recommendation of their law school.
  
  


• Study for and pass the bar exam. In order to practice any type of law in a particular state, the law student will have to pass an examination administered by that state’s bar association.
  
  


• Study for and pass the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Examination. This is a requirement for IP lawyers. If this examination is taken prior to the bar exam, then the person taking it will be registered as a patent agent. The registration may be changed after they have passed the bar.