Training and qualifying as a patent attorney requires hard work and dedication. To excel you need many talents, including a strong scientific understanding, excellent language skills and commercial acumen.

Working at the forefront of technology, patent attorneys work with clients to secure protection for technologies at the forefront of scientific innovation. Therefore, we are looking for candidates who have:

• excellent academic backgrounds, with a graduate or post-graduate degree level qualification in Chemistry, Biochemistry, or a related discipline;
• a drive for continued professional development and growth;
• excellent written and oral communication skills in both English and Swedish;
• an extremely high level of attention to detail;
• the ability to clearly and concisely explain complex ideas;
• are comfortable working both in teams and independently;
• a keen interest in growing both our clients’ businesses along with Potter Clarkson’s business

Note that a common question we often receive from candidates about training to be a patent attorney is “do I need a law degree?”, and the answer to this is no. No formal legal training is required to enter the profession and all legal training is provided on the job.

Therefore, if you are a scientist who is looking to explore opportunities away from the bench and you think you have the attributes necessary to excel as a patent attorney then please do apply.

The Firm and What We Offer

Potter Clarkson LLP is one of the leading pan-European Intellectual Property law firms, with seven offices across the UK, Denmark, Sweden and Germany.

We offer clients a full IP service to support them in achieving their commercial objectives. We pride ourselves in the exceptional level of client care offered by our approachable and engaged team.

We have over 90 patent and trade mark professionals and 10 IP solicitors, who are expertly assisted by over 130 support staff and state of the art IT infrastructure.

The firm is consistently ranked in the top tier of major legal guides, such as Legal 500 and MIP. We also hold three independent ISO accreditations which evidence our high level of environmental awareness, service provision and information security.

From day one you will be assigned a supervisor and mentor to guide you through the extensive training programme, and you will immediately work assisting clients with protecting their innovation under the supervision of qualified attorneys across the entire Chemistry team.

Candidates will be expected to work towards qualification as a European, and will also be encouraged to qualifying as a UK and/or Swedish patent attorney. Typically, it takes at least four years to qualify as a patent attorney, so we are looking for candidates who are ready to dedicate time to personal development. Candidates are provided all the support they need during their formative years and the firm invests heavily in their training and personal development to produce outstanding patent professionals.

Candidates will receive a competitive benefits package including 30 days of annual leave per annum, an annual wellness allowance, pension, life assurance, Euro accident insurance, birthday leave, discretionary bonus scheme and long service awards.

If you are ready for the challenge, we’d love to hear from you.