I studied IP during my law degree and after deciding that the traditional solicitor/barrister route was not for me, but that I definitely wanted to work in IP, I took to Google. A quick search for “legal jobs in IP” introduced me to the concept of a trade mark attorney, which had previously been completely unknown to both myself and my university careers advisor. From there I was able to meet a very kind attorney who was willing to talk to me about the profession and help me to gain some work experience in a firm of trade mark attorneys.

I do a lot of work for well-known names in fashion and telecommunications. It’s a great profession to allow you to build up quite a detailed knowledge of many and varied industries, some of which you might already be enthusiastic about, others you might never have come across before. The job is also really rewarding and gives a real sense of accomplishment; considering we work with intangible material it is easy to find yourself surrounded by tangible results – nothing quite beats that feeling of walking down the high street, spotting a trade mark you have helped to register and thinking: “I was a part of making that happen”.

As part of my day-to-day work, I spend time advising clients about strategies for protecting their various IP assets, including conducting clearance searches so I can advise about the risk of adopting new trade marks. I also spend time prosecuting and defending contentious matters, such as oppositions and invalidity actions before the UK Intellectual Property Office. The vast majority of the time, this involves preparing evidence and legal arguments which are submitted in writing, but occasionally it involves oral advocacy before a Hearing Officer. The role is varied and my days are always engaging as I spend time considering a wide range of different types of query and working on different kinds of tasks covering everything from quick administrative checks to time-consuming and thought-provoking queries.

If you are hoping to join the profession, my advice is to try and find opportunities to experience a day in the life of a firm, such as via work experience programmes or webinars held as part of the Summer of IP programme. I would also suggest you try to find opportunities to speak to people working in your chosen profession so that you can ask them questions and get advice. You will find that many people here are willing to give some of their time to speak to you about how to enter the profession.

Trade Mark Attorney / AA Thornton

Last Updated: October 30, 2024