Patent Attorney — Life Sciences & Chemistry (Ph.D.)
About The Position
HYLTON-RODIC LAW is seeking a junior Ph.D.-trained patent attorney to join their growing intellectual property boutique in Washington, DC. The firm serves sophisticated clients in life sciences, biotechnology, pharmaceutical, chemical, university, startup, and other innovation-driven sectors. They are looking for individuals who are ambitious about the quality of their legal work, serious about client service, curious about better ways to practice law, and deliberate about building a firm where excellent lawyers can do challenging work and maintain a life outside of it. This is a producing attorney role where significant responsibility and autonomy are earned through demonstrated competence, judgment, and ownership. The firm emphasizes continuous improvement, client service, and developing people, approaching the practice of law with curiosity and discipline.
Requirements
- Ph.D. in a relevant life sciences, chemistry, biochemistry, pharmaceutical sciences, biotechnology, or closely related discipline
- J.D.
- Active membership in good standing in at least one U.S. jurisdiction
- Active USPTO registration
- Approximately 1–2+ years of substantive patent prosecution experience (may have been gained as an attorney, patent agent, student associate, or technical specialist)
- Scientific depth, writing ability, judgment, curiosity, and learning velocity to develop into an exceptional patent practitioner
- Healthy ambition and a desire to grow and contribute
- Ability to love difficult science and not be intimidated by unfamiliar technology
- Quick learning ability and the capacity to ask good questions
- Pride in excellent writing
- Desire for feedback to improve
- Intellectual confidence and humility
- Ownership mentality
- Resourcefulness when the answer is not obvious
- Reliable follow-through
- Client focus
- Desire for increasing responsibility
- Ability to work effectively with smart people
- Ability to rally when demanding client work requires it
- Excitement about helping build a growing firm
- Instinct to figure things out when encountering the unknown
Nice To Haves
- Exceptional candidates with somewhat less traditional experience may also be considered where demonstrated capability is unusually strong.
Responsibilities
- Drafting patent applications
- Analyzing Office Actions and cited prior art
- Developing claim amendments and prosecution strategy
- Drafting substantive Office Action responses
- Conducting prior-art and patentability analyses
- Participating in inventor and scientist interviews
- Supporting U.S. and international patent prosecution
- Working with foreign associates
- Learning to evaluate individual prosecution decisions in the context of a broader portfolio
- Communicating directly with clients and inventors as capabilities develop
- Managing deadlines and developing ownership of the docket
- Working effectively with legal-support professionals
- Increasingly participating in the strategic thinking behind the work
Benefits
- Health, dental, and vision insurance
- Employer-subsidized individual medical coverage
- 401(k) with employer match
- Life insurance
- Short- and long-term disability coverage
- Commuter benefits
- Paid time off
- Paid firm holidays
- Three Mental Health Days
- Birthday leave
- Annual year-end firm closure through New Year’s
- Sunshine Fridays / early Fridays when applicable performance targets are met
- Floating remote days
- HRL’s Sabbatical Program, providing extended paid leave at milestone anniversaries
- Performance-based compensation program allowing for additional annual cash compensation ($75,000+) for exceptional production and performance
- Flexibility when life genuinely calls for it
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Entry Level
Education Level
Ph.D. or professional degree
