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New examiners have an initial training course which lasts for 7 to 8 weeks and is a combination of “classroom” teaching, workshops and small group tutorial sessions.
The aim of the course is to cover the basics of patent law and the tools used to search and examination patent applications and draft search and examination reports.
Alongside the classroom teaching new examiners are allocated to a tutorial group where they discuss examples and coursework exercises.
After the initial training programme, new associate patent examiners are allocated to an examination group. Each group works on different areas of technology (e.g. biotechnology, telecoms, civil engineering, mining and drilling, heating and cooling, vehicles, measurement….), and certain groups specialise in training and managing new examiners. For most examiners their initial group will not be the technology they will end up working on for the majority of their career. All work is “revised” by their line manager who will provide detailed feedback.
During the first couple of years examiners move around line manager and technology to give them exposure to different types of technology, patent law, methods of searching and ways of writing reports. While this change may seem quite daunting, most examiners enjoy the variation in subject matter and line manager.
During the first two years, examiners have further formal training programmes – Advanced Search and Examination Training which recaps and expands upon the initial training topics, and Wider Legal Framework which covers areas of patent law beyond the day to day work (e.g. legal practice and court decisions).
Between two and five years in the office, our new B2 patent examiners will apply for promotion to C1 patent examiner. This is not a competitive promotion, it all depends on their individual work and whether they are independently proficient.
One of the things many examiners like about the job is the ongoing learning that is required.
Every patent application an examiner works on is different and requires them to work out how the invention works and how the possible citations work as well…. each case is something new to learn. We also need to keep abreast of changes in patent law as the courts make decisions be it minor variations on what has gone before, or sometimes major changes in patent practice which introduces new tests which we need to apply. New technology, such as AI, can also change how we view different areas of law.
As examiners we need to ensure our technical, legal and other (e.g. line management) skills are kept up-to-date. The IPO has various training programmes to help us do that, some of which we’ll talk about next.
After promotion examiners have the opportunity to study for a post graduate qualification in Intellectual Property Law with the University of South Wales. The course provides further knowledge of other types of IP rights (trade marks, designs, copyright) and the legal system – e.g. contract law and how the courts operate. Examiners find the chance to learn about the bigger picture and having discussions with lecturers on legal topics very enjoyable and rewarding.
There is rolling programmes of training seminars on patent law and practice and our search tools to refresh our examiners knowledge and keep them abreast of any relevant court decisions.
As examiners progress they also have the opportunity to undertake line management training to develop the skills to manage and train other examiners.
Examiners need to keep up with developments in technology and the drivers behind where firms are innovating and this is an important part of their ongoing training. This training will vary from technology to technology – for example attending trade fairs or conferences, watching industry training videos, reading articles or scientific journals. Through casework and technical training, examiners become mini-experts in their field of technology.
Beyond training for the examiner role, there are many other opportunities at the IPO to develop, both personally and professionally – such as the current Transformation project which is revolutionising our IT systems, or being on the steering group of one of our staff networks.
The IPO is also very involved in the Government Science and Engineering Profession and we have examiners sitting on cross-departmental groups ranging from diversity and inclusivity to training, leadership or secondments.
