Author: jayminj633

Day 8: Food Trucks and Goodbyes

Today I spent my day, in the morning at least, stalking people. Well, that sounds a lot worse than it actually was. Essentially, when a client/inventor of a design wants to get a patent for their design, they must sign all of the proper documents. However, sometimes the people themselves do not file/sign the documents for a variety of reasons; forgetting about it, ignored it, moved companies on bad terms, or even died. The latter is quite rare I am told. Anyways, after searching for around 3 hours to find 15 different people I managed to find 14 of them, something the paralegals at the firm were not able to do for quite some time J. The last of the 15 I could not find because he had essentially fallen off of the face of the earth. There was no record of him whatsoever.   For lunch there was a food truck outside of the office and we all took great advantage of it. After lunch I sat with Ms. Emily Ashley and she walked me through an IDS, an “Information Disclosure Statement”. Essentially what it’s a massive bibliography, but slightly more extreme. By the end of the day I made my way around the office to say my goodbyes. It was sad, but also I could not have been more pleased with the experience. The firm was extraordinarily helpful with not only furthering my interest in IP law, but also helping me learn more about what it means to have a job in the real world.

 

 

Day 7: Filing and Documenting

Today was another day at the KDB office. Today I sat in on another meeting, this time with some Intel executives, in which we discussed various upgrades to the technology of Intel Corporation. The meeting was very interesting I then shadowed Ms. Moye as she filed some documents and sent them off to Richard Dyer, an attorney for KDB. I spoke with John Kavinsky about patents that are currently pending and he even let me submit a patent to the USPTO myself, after I proofed it of course. I then saw how applications and declarations are filed. Everything was generally pretty straightforward, just a lot of copy and pasting. But tomorrow I get to speak with more attorneys and learn how their lives work!

Day 6: Proofing a Patent and Meetings!

 

Today was another day at the KDB office in Durham. When I arrived at around 8:30 this morning, I was told I was going to be participating in a meeting with Mr. Kavinsky and some Facebook executives. Although I can’t legally say what we discussed, I can say that it was very, very interesting. The meeting lasted about one hour and afterwards I met with Ms. Courtney White where she walked me through how to proof a patent using the USPTO website and various other patent tools. It was actually quite interesting seeing all the hard work that goes into making sure a patent application is properly filed and sent off. I then shadowed Ms. Moye as she sent out a patent to an IP attorney on its deadline. There are a lot of steps that go into this process and the entire process took around 45 minuets to complete. I then got to do some proofing myself as I was assigned 10 patents to proof. Those took me about 3 hours in total to do. Overall the day was pretty eventful and riveting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 5: Working with KDB!

Today was my first day at KDB, a law firm in Durham that was willing to let me intern there for this week. KDB is a law firm based out of Raleigh and was co-founded by John Kavinsky, Matt’s dad. I went to their office and had lunch with them and talked to Ms. Rodney Moye and Mr. John Kavinsky. They spent their time helping me get adjusted to “Real-Job-Life”, as they put it. Ms. Moye made a power point presentation to me about what a patent is and what a patent application is as well. Ms. Kayla Kelly also helped me through the company’s website as well as the various websites she and her colleagues use on a daily basis. It was overall very interesting to learn how a normal day in the life of a patent attorney or a paralegal really is, and I look forward to learning even more the rest of this week!

Day 4; Environmental Law!!

Today was an especially important day because I got the opportunity to talk to Ms. Robin Smith, an environmental law attorney in Chapel Hill. She and I met at Caribou Coffee in Chapel Hill to discuss what she as an Environmental law attorney does, as well as what the field encompasses. We talked about what she does as an ELA and I learned so much about the field and about what steps it takes to become an individual in her position. We talked about how important EL is and will be in the future because of the increases in technology and increasing need for protection of our world’s natural resources. Overall, it was a fascinating discussion that got me even more interested in pursuing a career in Environmental Law.

Day 3: Meeting a Patent Examiner and Learning about the USPTO

Today was another interesting and important day learning even more about patent and IP law. I met with Mr. Rajiv Raj at “A Place at the Table” in Raleigh. Mr. Raj is a licensed and registered patent examiner for the USPTO. We met and discussed what he does as an examiner and what the USPTO does in general. It was very interesting to hear about what an examiner in his career does. Essentially, he helps approve patents that his clients send him and helps determine whether or not they (the patents) are viable and/or feasible. He explained to me the process he took to get to where he is. He told me about his background in medicine that allowed him to pursue his law degree in patent examination. Overall, the day was very informative and has given me even more perspective on what the industry really is.

http://www.itbinsider.com/development-beat-a-place-at-the-table/

Day 2: Trademarks!

Today I spent a few hours with Mr. Ed Timberlake, a trademark and copyright consultant for Sotomayor Inc. Mr. Timberlake and I talked about what a Trademark and Copyright attorney does and what their impacts are. We met in RTP at “The Frontier” where Mr. Timberlake works. We started talking about the differences between a patent lawyer and a trademark lawyer, and why they are both important, but do different things. He told me there is a common misconception when referring to the USPTO; those who work in patents are different than those who work in trademarks. They fall under the association of “USPTO”, but function as two separate entities. He previously worked in D.C., much like Mr. Sotomayor, and he worked as an examiner for the USPTO. We discussed what a trademark actually is, and what it functions as. I learned so much more about IP law from Mr. Timberlake and I am excited to learn even more tomorrow!

Day 1, Learning about IP Law!

Today was my first day of WEP and I got the opportunity to meet with Mr. John Sotomayor of Sotomayor IP consulting, LTD. We met for a few hours discussing what exactly an Intellectual Property Lawyer does and what the job entails. He walked me through an application for a patent, of which he works with on a daily basis. The application was arduous, long, and extensive. He talked to me about the intricacies that go along with making a claim/application and how important it is to be “broad and specific”, as Mr. Sotomayor put it. With IP law, I learned there are a lot of ways in which one can get approved or denied for a certain idea that they have. We also discussed the prerequisites that come along with the IP law field. One must have 32 hours of a science as well as a BS, in any category. I learned so much about what it means to be an IP lawyer/attorney, as well as a lawyer/attorney in general.

Skip to toolbar