"I chose Reddie & Grose because they have a reputation for providing first class training for new starters."
Having injured myself several times in the laboratory during my final year at university, I decided that academia was not for me. Once I graduated, I began looking for jobs. I wanted to continue working with science and technology but in a commercial rather than an academic context, and I did not want to be in a lab! Patent law ticked all the boxes and gave me the opportunity to develop new skills. I applied to R&G and, following two interviews at their London office, I was delighted to be offered a job. I joined the firm as a technical assistant in September 2014.
I was immediately given real cases to attend to and now I handle cases from a number of the firm’s attorneys. I spend my time responding to objections from patent offices, writing to clients and going through my work with other attorneys. I have also drafted some patent applications which was exciting. All of this is supervised by my training partner.
Complementing my work is the formal training run by R&G which is as extensive and thorough as you will find anywhere in the profession. There is a long established two week ‘boot camp’ in September and training every Monday thereafter until Christmas. R&G stood out for me as being more committed to training than many other firms. Having been here for 2 years, I can report that this reputation is well deserved.
After a year working at R&G, trainees attend a 3 month Certificate in Intellectual Property Law course at Queen Mary, University of London. I attended this last year, it was a good opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the law that we work with every day and a chance to meet trainees from other firms.
For me the most challenging part of the job is juggling all the cases you are given and keeping track of the deadlines. This requires organisation skills which I am definitely still developing but my training partner is always there to support me. Having an eye for detail is also important as a patent attorney. From spotting a single feature in a prior art document to ensuring a form is filled in correctly, an attention to detail is essential. Away from the desk, R&G has an active social side with plenty of events throughout the year; we even have a successful softball team!
My advice for anyone thinking of applying to R&G would be to apply early and, before the interview, read some actual patents and try to understand what the various parts of the patent are for.
