Re: NEC-LIST: Patents

On Feb 2, 2004, at 11:03 PM, J. Mc Laughlin wrote:

> I had expected that the early unsubstantiated statements in this thread
> would be seen by the knowledgeable for what they are. Now, I must
> offer
> a clarification.
>
> Mr. Pender's impressive CV at
> http://members.bellatlantic.net/~mpender/resume.pdf
> indicates that he is likely to be knowledgeable as he is a patent agent
> and has graduated from law school. He is also founder of his own
> company. After passing the bar exam and sending a notification to the
> PTO, he will become a patent attorney. Thus his putative disparaging
> statement about patent attorneys needs to be examined with care.

I didn't intend my statements to be 'disparaging,' rather the opposite
I think. The practice of patent law (or any area of law) is a
professional service. In that way, a patent attorney is no different
than any other service provider. A good attorney can be a valuable
advisor and a counselor. But there are very good (and very bad)
members of every profession, including the practice of law.

> When one examines the words he used, one sees that the statement is
> not
> at all necessarily disparaging of patent attorneys. The important part
> is the qualifier "I've known." It may well be that Mr. Pender's ambit
> of patent attorneys is not very large and thus his list of competent
> patent attorneys is short. It may also be that every patent attorney
> of
> his acquaintance is judged by him to be competent.

I've known hundreds of patent attorneys. And the field isn't that
large. And I don't judge every attorney I've met to be either
competent or incompetent. Usually, there is a broad range of skill and
competence to be found, and it does not always correlate with the cost
of the services offered.

Bear in mind that unlike other members of the field, I am also a
*consumer* of patent services (searching for patents, hiring and firing
attorneys, etc.). My experience helps me to act as an educated
consumer when choosing people to represent my company's interests. My
$0.02 as a business person is to try to find competent people to work
with, and to stick with them if they decide to change firms. I prefer
to work one-on-one with people and to develop working relationships
over time. To me, when working with an attorney its important to find
a *person* to work with, instead of a firm with a lofty reputation or a
large list of filed patent applications.

> I know a great many patent attorneys. I have yet to encounter one
> I
> thought incompetent. Bar associations deal harshly with incompetence.
> Individual patent attorneys have different interests.

Bar associations rarely do anything at all to incompetent patent
attorneys. The number one reason a patent attorney is ousted from the
field is for mishandling client funds (e.g. commingling client funds
with their personal funds). And when it happens, it is usually because
their client files a complaint with the Office of Enrollment and
Discipline at the Patent Office, not the local bar association.

I hope that people will take away a few clear points from my comments:
1) The practice of law is a service industry and it is an expensive
service. Demand good service.
2) It never hurts to ask an attorney for a recent example of their work
showing their competence in the subject matter of the invention. Its
good to get a sense of whether or not the attorney is familiar with
your field before placing your faith in their skills.
3) Word-of-mouth referrals may not tell you much about an attorney's
technical competence, but it can tell you a lot about an attorney who
is never available when you have a question, or who doesn't return
phone calls.
4) It doesn't hurt to get a second opinion--especially in sticky
situations. Good advice is often worth more than what you pay for it.

My list of things a *good* and competent attorney does:
1) Return phone calls promptly, usually within 24 hours.
2) Keep the client informed. Call the client if a deadline is coming
up and you haven't heard from them.
3) Ask other attorneys for advice. Sometimes its important to change
tactics, especially when dealing with a difficult personality.
4) Ask the client what they want to do; not substitute the attorney's
judgment for the client's.

That said, there are more than a few good practitioners in the field,
but it helps to educate yourself as a consumer before hiring an
attorney to work for you.

In the spirit of Mr. Mc Laughlin's comment, I agree that we should get
back to discussing NEC-related subjects, since this thread is drifting
off-topic.

Regards,

- Mike

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