There are two main areas in which to practise as a patent attorney. First, as part of the licensing bodies (the UK Intellectual Property Office, which is in effect part of the UK Civil Service, and the European Patent Office) and secondly, as an intermediary (patent attorneys in private practice or industry, who come between the ‘inventors’ and the licensing bodies).
- The UK Intellectual Property Office, which is based in Newport, South Wales, usually recruits a few trainees each year; the posts are advertised on their website.
- The European Patent Office is based in Munich with branches in The Hague and Berlin. The European Patent Office typically recruits a few Assistant Examiners each year and vacancies are usually advertised on their website.
- Firms of patent attorneys. These are often described as the ‘private practice’ section of the patent agents’ profession and about 80% of the 1,500 UK-registered patent attorneys work in this area. Most years there are around 30-40 vacancies for trainee patent attorneys. The Intellectual Property Regulation Board (IPReg) has a Register of Patent Attorneys which is a searchable database of private practice firms.
- Patent departments in industrial companies. These are usually fairly small departments within large companies that have a substantial investment in research. The ‘in-house’ patent attorney deals with the patent work arising from that company only. In such departments there are only a small number of vacancies a year and these are more likely to be for qualified patent attorneys rather than for trainees. In the Civil Service and its agencies these ‘in-house’ patent attorneys are called Patent Officers.