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At Stinson, our attorneys combine industry knowledge and business acumen to deliver practical legal guidance to clients ranging from individuals to privately-held enterprises to international corporations. Patrice Jean, a molecular biology Ph.D. and co-chair of Hughes Hubbard & Reeds life sciences group; Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox partner Eldora Ellison; Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner partner Mareesa Frederick and others would qualify for such a list, Turner said. 79% of Patent Attorneys are male, and 20% are female, so there are more male Patent Attorneys than female Patent Attorneys in the United States. All lawyers, but black lawyers especiallymake sure theyre playing an integral role in a meaningful case from the outset, he said. I have seen, in my career, people who presume from the outset that I could not be handed much responsibility, because they didnt think I belonged in the responsibility-carrying club, Smith said. You cant just wait until you have some applicants in law school to start diversity efforts, Longsworth said. Loeb & Loeb LLP Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP Norton Rose Fulbright LLP Sidley Austin LLP, As the 2019-2020 bar year comes to an end and we begin planning for 2020-2021, weve been reflecting deeply on how we can best serve you as we, 2020 Association of Black Women Attorneys New York, ABWA's Pressing Forward - Let's All Get Involved, ABWA's 2020 Ruth Whitehead Whaley Scholarship Celebration. Their president, Jefferson Davis, had unsuccessfully tried before to get a U.S. patent on a propeller invented by a man, Benjamin Montgomery, enslaved by his brother, according to research from University of Kentucky law professor Brian Frye. U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Racial Gap Sustained The racial divide persists for many reasons that don't lend themselves to simple fixes. While they continue to make big strides and literally raise the bar across all practice areas of law, here are 10 black female attorneys you should know. Dr. Bruce E. Black is a registered patent attorney and specializes in domestic and international patent procurement, client counseling, licensing, and due diligence for innovations in the areas of medical devices, chemistry, physics, materials science, biotechnology, mechanical arts, and software. The Confederate states allowed slave owners to patent the inventions of their slaves. Patents and National Security, Hanami: Cherry Blossom Time, in Perpetuity, Back to School for the Spring Semester (1861), Looking Backward: From 5G to the Telegraph, Patent Priority: the First Woman Patent Lawyer, Copyrighting the Cultural Revolution in China and America, Women and Innovation in Developing Countries. You could start there, she said. Surfing Trademark Issues on the Web (F&L White Paper, 9/06; Crafting an Effective Patent Invalidity OpinionIs it the Last Bastion of Defense? (PLI, 2003-2006; Being and Finding Good Mentors (BWLA, 3/06), Trade Secret Protection in the 21st Century (F&L Litigation Conference, 12/05), The Dilution DilemmaLitigating Dilution Claims and the Trademark Dilution Revision Act of 2005 (ABA/Navigant Consulting IP Roundtable, 12/05), IP Roundtable on Key Patent Appellate Cases, including, Digital, Wireless & New Media TechnologiesIs Your IP Future in the Right Hands? (Chair/Founder, F&L 1st Annual IP Conference, 9/05), "Discovery Issues in Patent Litigation (PLI, 9/05), Internet-Related Trademark Litigation Issues & Trends (INTA, 5/05), New Insights into IP Law in ChinaPresenter on Trade Secret Protection (F&L Corporate Counsel Seminar, 3/05), Preparing to Initiate or Defend a Patent Lawsuit (ABA, 10/04), IP Litigation: Avoiding the Money Pit (, How Do You Measure Up? Samuel Newman, of Bowdoin College, Old School? This will further equip us to play a pivotal role in driving meaningful changes and ensuring that our voices are heard. As you can see, patent examiner and patent attorney have the biggest difference in gender. Boston, MA pays an annual average wage of $119,512, the highest in the US. Whites are over three times more likely to become inventors as Blacks, Harvard University researchers found in 2018. Black IP lawyers have felt the impact of their race as early as their educational years. Admitted to practice in Illinois and the District of Columbia, Ms. Allgaier is also admitted to practice before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Email: info@allgaierpatentsolutions.com, Reviving an abandoned trademark application, THE ROLE LICENSES PLAY IN INCREASING BUSINESS REVENUE. Jamaal's enthusiasm for intellectual property law and the underlying science of medical device technologies is matched by his strong knowledge and mastery of the challenging patent process. When I introduce myself at conferences or events and give my elevator pitch, the surprise is often palpable.. For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [emailprotected], Shearman and Hogan Lovells Call Off Merger Talks, Early Reports: 2023 Am Law 200 Financials, Beyond Excess Capacity, Pooled Services and Automation Expedite Staff Layoffs, Dozens of Law Firms Grew Their Equity Partner Tier, Even as Profits and Demand Plummeted. After earning a B.S. He has particular experience in patent preparation, prosecution and counseling in the fields of medical devices, optics, semiconductors, superconductors, lasers, solid state physics, RF and radar electronics, television/display technologies, software, electrochemical and optical sensors, organic and organometallic chemistry, pharmaceuticals, polymers and DNA assays. Call the Hollin Law Offices in Georgia today at 770-872-4703, or contact us online. After speaking with a new partner from another office for 15 minutes, he said to her, Well, it was good chatting with you, but Ive really got to meet members of the management committee. The darker areas across the 50 states highlight the highest salaries. Call our Georgia Criminal Appeals Lawyers today at 1- (770) 284-3147 to schedule your free initial consultation so our attorneys can review your case. Lisa Cook, an economics professor at Michigan State, linked declines in African American patenting to race riots and acts of violence, including the decimation of a once-thriving Black business community in Tulsa, Okla., in 1921 when a white racist mob killed hundreds of Black residents. Just based on the number of employees within each industry, we were able to determine the most common industries that employ patent attorneys. FURTHER DUPLICATION WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED. Shreveport Uzezi Abugo Uzezi Abugo, Attorney at Law Michael Acquah Hueston Hennigan LLP Los Angeles Michael Adams DeCuir, Clark & Adams, LLP Use our chart to find out where that salary is located. Asian patent attorneys have the highest average salary compared to other ethnicities. Foley & Lardners Gills faces the double challenge of practicing patent law while being black and female. That some lawyers have scientific backgrounds and use them was not on my radar, she said. The industry-leading media platform offering competitive intelligence to prepare for today and anticipate opportunities for future success. Patent records therefore provide invaluable objective information that shed light on the actual rather than invented experiences of underrepresented groups. The most common ethnicity of patent attorneys is White (75.3%), followed by Hispanic or Latino (7.9%), Asian (6.5%) and Black or African American (5.7%). History of African American Inventors. Years ago, she said, a Black deputy general counsel at a Fortune 500 company got Gills a meeting with the outfits White general counsel. If you are a person of color, particularly a Black person, and you want to find a lawyer who is not going to think of you as intellectually inferior, who is not going to have some of those barriers and those implicit biases that may exist, its hard, Johnson said. She recalls a session at a partner retreat last year for introducing members of the management committee. She may have obtained informal legal training, but that is pure speculation, without any reliable supporting evidence. There are a lack of visible Black mentors; for example, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the nations highest court for most patent cases, has never had a Black judge. Our Compliance bundles are curated by CLE Counselors and include current legal topics and challenges within the industry. (Charlotte Ray was the first black woman to obtain a law degree from Howard University in 1872, and a total of 34 more women lawyers graduated there by 1940.) In addition, she regularly presents seminars, and publishes on a variety of IP topics, including: Jeanne has previously served on the firms Strategic Planning, Diversity, and Recruiting Committees and was the former chair and founder of the firms African-American Attorneys Affinity Group. Emerging technologies your clients are talking about (ACC Seminar, 3/15), Hot Topics in IP and Advertising/Promotions (Client CLE, 2/15), Patent Litigation: Jury Considerations (Practical Law Webinar, 1/15), Strategies for Winning NPE Litigation (Client CLE, 11/14), IPx: Evolution to Revolution (Chair, F&L 10th Annual IP Conference, 9/14), Right-sizing the Approach in Defending Against NPE Claims (MIP International Womens Leadership Forum, 6/14). NextGen IPs founder, Flo Donovan, said the only way to ensure in my life-time that minority inventors are included in the patent process was to create a foundation for this purpose.. Toomey got a patent in 1930 for an appliance to prevent ice on airplanes. Thomas L. Jennings (1791-1859), for example, learned tailoring and dry cleaning and carried on that business in New York City, where in 1821, at the age of 30, he received a patent for an improvement in dry cleaning processes perhaps the first black person in this country to have received one . I say its largely an excuse, because there are people who do exist, she said. 5.0 (4) Our Firm Our legal system is largely comprised of two different types of cases: civil and criminal in both of which we are specializing. Among the roughly 8% of students in ABA accredited law schools who are Black, many are first generation law students, and may not have strong insight regarding the structure of law school, Dike said. Henry E. Baker, a black patent examiner who was appointed in 1876, underlined that the patent system was colorblind; and neither the laws nor the administration excluded or differentiated on the basis of personal characteristics. But if they dont open the pool to see whats out there, they dont know what theyre missing., Turner notes that the underrepresentation of black attorneys is far from a new issue. Return to our main appellate law firm page. Numerous sources claim that she obtained a law degree from Howard University, but the college catalogues show that this was not the case. Barriers in science education for Black students start as early as middle school, they say. Stanley M. Gibson. As a dialogue springs up around systemic racism, lawyers like Kirkland & Ellis' Ellisen Turner and Foley & Lardner's Jeanne Gills say there's no more excuse for clients not to include black patent lawyers on their Rolodexes. *** In 1906, the Boston Daily Globe reported that Through the untiring efforts of Miss Miriam E. Benjamin of Boston, a clerk in one of the Departments at Washington, $10,482 has been awarded Samuel Lee, a negro, who was elected to congress 25 years ago, but never sworn in. Benjamin lobbied to bring the bill to aid Samuel Lee before Congress nine times, until it finally passed in 1906. 1928-2014. However, the two patent applications for her brothers inventions offer direct proof of her standing as a patent practitioner, including her actual signature. STEM education, or practical experience verified by individual states, is a requirement to take that bar exam. The same goes for the privilege and willingness to take advantage of systemic racism that we all witnessed in the recent video from Central Park, he said, referring to a viral video of Amy Cooper calling the cops on Christian Cooper, a black man who asked that she leash her dog. When clients and law firm rainmakers invest in and bet on black IP attorneys, good things tend to happen, Drayton said. Clients can push outside law firms to staff legal matters with diverse practitioners. Previously, Dr. Black was a member of the legal affairs department at 3M Company where he supported 3Ms optical and display business units. I am now cautiously hopeful that the terrible tragedies of 2020 will bring about real and lasting change., REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION FROM THE JUNE 12, 2020 EDITION OF AMERICAN LAWYER MEDIA 2020 PORTFOLIO MEDIA INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Those industries include professional, manufacturing and technology. in biology, again from Texas Southern University. He believes that, with the pandemic as a backdrop, the message is getting through that we are all one community that must watch out for each other and take active steps to keep each other safe, Turner said. 342B Park Avenue Unit B2 Her listing in the 1920 census as a patent attorney is certainly notable, but the census takers simply recorded what householders told them. Best Patent Attorneys near you Savage Consulting Expert Attorneys Established Law Firms In All Areas Of Law 5.0 (4) Miami, FL 33125 55 years in business Request a quote View Profile Vanst Law, LLC. He made me the leader of the Silicon Valley office. Miriam Benjamin was actively involved in the patenting process, as an inventor and assignee. American History. After finding the gender ratio, we wondered if the percentages of LGBT persons were different as well. https://www.law.com/therecorder/2020/06/12/take-that-on-black-patent-attorneys-say-its-time-they-are-recognized/. The best, most perfectly qualified lawyer for a matter may be a black lawyer, but if theyre not in your network, youre not hearing about them. The professional industry is the highest-paying for patent attorneys. Science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education isnt required to practice IP law, including patent litigation. Access to additional free ALM publications, 1 free article* across the ALM subscription network every 30 days, Exclusive discounts on ALM events and publications. Some examples of the most popular Black bar associations in the country include: John Mercer Langston Bar Association; Black Lawyers Association of Cincinnati; Black Women Lawyers' Association; Association of Black Women Attorneys; and. The average age of an employed patent attorney is 46 years old. The patent is one of the so-called "X-patents," a group of 10,000 or so patents issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office between its creation in 1790 and 1836, when a fire began in . Some companies tend to go with what they know, he said. For instance, most patent attorneys prefer to work at private companies over public companies. Our Membership Committee is actively working to bring back our members-only Mentorship Program, which will help members step outside of their comfort zones, astutely navigate the corporate landscape, and otherwise grow personally and professionally. Between 2008 and 2018, this is how the number of patent attorneys changed. Hollin can help you with patents, trademarks, and infringement issues. Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?Subscribe Now. (310) 201-3548. Patent records also refute the common tendency to attribute an entire industrial category to a single inventor in fact, over 800 similar signalling devices were filed before 1910, and dozens prior to Benjamins own invention. The bills were referred to their respective committees but have seen no further action. The paper in question is Violence and economic activity: evidence from African American patents, 1870-1940, . Were kicking up our social justice and civil rights initiatives. Don't miss the crucial news and insights you need to make informed legal decisions. The initiative's progress, as well as that of IPReg, the regulator for patent and trademark attorneys in the UK, has been documented previously. Well-versed in all aspects of intellectual property law, Jamaal focuses his practice on preparing and prosecuting patents in the U.S. and abroad. She was similarly the attorney of record, when her younger brother, Edgar P. Benjamin (18691972), received U.S. patent no. District of Columbia is the best state for patent attorneys to live. The amount you can make as a patent attorney can depend on where you live. Our estimates are verified against BLS, Census, and current job openings data for accuracy. Our Team Account subscription service is for legal teams of four or more attorneys. The Cochran Firm was founded over 40 years ago by the late Johnnie L. Cochran, Jr., one of the country's most well-known and well-respected legal advocates. Within the legal profession, clients, firm management and associates have been reaching out to ask about ways they can help. Black or Afro-American Inventors PATENT AND INVENTION INDEX INVENTOR INVENTION DATE PATENT Page 1 of 10 A Abrams, W. B. Hame Attachment April 14, 1891 450,550 Allen, C. W. Self-Leveling Table November 1, 1898 613,436 Allen, J. A U.S. Patent and Trademark Office council will begin tackling a huge challenge this year: boosting the percentage of patent owners who are Blacka figure that hovers in the single digits by some estimates. Drayton said he too benefited from a black role model: former Cooley partner Daniel Johnson Jr., now of the Dan Johnson Law Group. Waldrop was asking himself, Do I really want to do this? Avoiding Litigation Pitfalls through Effective Patent Prosecution (Article, Getting Off To A Good Start Drafting A Patent Application to Survive Prosecution and Litigation (AIPLA Annual Meeting, 2002), An IP Litigation Perspective on Licensing (PLI, 2001), Contributor to the IPLAC Litigation Committees Federal Circuit (2001 and 2002) Review of. Sterne Kessler, for instance, recruits technical specialists that are not lawyers from historically black colleges and groups like the Society of Women Engineers. Well be inviting experts to discuss ways to have meaningful conversations in our respective companies and organizations. We found most patent attorneys work for a private company. In 2021, women earned 93% of what men earned. The second-most popular foreign language spoken is Mandarin at 20.0% and Japanese is the third-most popular at 12.7%. Black STEM students are more likely to switch majors or leave college than Whites, researchers from the University of Texas and Florida International University found recently. Another problem is a gap in those who leave college with degrees in patent-intensive fields like science, technology, engineering, and math, experts say. Duane Morris energy attorneys assist clients with advisory, regulatory, litigation, transactional and legislative matters involving environmental, energy and natural resources issues. "Recent Developments in Patent Law & Best Practices with Patent Opinions" (Client CLE, 6/20) "2019 PTAB Year In Review" (F&L Webinar, 1/20) . We provide excellence in legal services and are proud to be one of the most powerful networks in the industry. The invention was highlighted at the Atlanta Exposition of 1895. Although formal barriers to the patent system were removed with the abolition of slavery and the passage of the 14th Amendmentwhich guarantees citizenship to anyone born in the U.S.studies show Black inventors continued to face legal and societal obstacles. However, an overlooked and unique contribution is that she was the first black woman who practiced as a patent attorney. Jeanne is admitted to practice in Illinois, the Federal Circuit, the Seventh Circuit, and various federal district courts, in addition to the United States Patent & Trademark Office. Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates Being laser focused on the opportunities afforded Black lawyers and the outcomes will allow firms to course correct for any potential disparate impact associated with long standing practices, Drayton said. Organizations like the National Bar Association, the largest national network of predominantly African American attorneys and judges, or the Chicago Black Partners Alliance can provide lists. Her first patent, dated July 17, 1888, was for gong and signal chairs to be used in dining-rooms, in hotels, restaurants, steamboats, railroad-trains, theaters, the hall of the Congress of the United States, the halls of the legislatures of the various States, for the use of all deliberative bodies, and for the use of invalids in hospitals. She effectively used the media, and her improvement was widely publicized by newspaper articles and features in womens magazines. The map here shows where patent attorneys earn the highest salaries in the U.S. Lawyers and other IP professionals also have a responsibility to help diverse entrepreneurs and inventors, said Deborah Lodge, a partner at Squire Patton Boggs who has participated in New Voices Foundation educational programs about IP protection. Fewer than 2% of IP lawyers are Black, according to 2017 data from the American Intellectual Property Law Association. Tailoring was a relatively easy craft for African-Americans to enter, whether male or female. This is perfect for attorneys licensed in multiple jurisdictions or for attorneys that have fulfilled their CLE requirement but need to access resourceful information for their practice areas. Its hard to do if youre black, white, brown, green or purple, he said. "With little recourse to the courts, African Americans would have found it nearly impossible to fight patent infringement, even if they had been represented by white attorneys," Cook wrote. Lawyers do XYZ. She is a staunch champion of diversity in the legal profession and is a founding member of the Black Patent Network and the Chicago Black Partner Alliance. 475,749 for a bicycle clip in 1892, two years before he graduated from Boston University School of Law. The decision essentially precluded Black people from patenting their inventions. The technical knowledge of handling a trial, and the marketability of that knowledgethat could never be taken from me. Phillips & Associates Attorneys at Law, PLLC All of us should feel terrible about black women making up less than 1% of the equity partners in law firms, Gills said. At the time, applicants were required to take an oath of citizenshipthe same year the high court ruled out citizenship for Blacks in Dred Scott v. Sanford. Getting The Talent Balance Right: From Layoffs to Laterals to Mergers, How Can Firms Staff for Success? Interestingly enough, the average age of patent attorneys is 40+ years old, which represents 67% of the population. But that in itself wasnt enough. Join The Recorder now! Likewise Foley & Lardner partner Jeanne Gills, a member of the firms management committee. When Griffin polled colleagues and clients, who ranged from small business owners to NASA engineers, on when they learned about patents, and that they had value, most said either in graduate school or after starting their careers. With this subscription you will receive unlimited access to high quality, online, on-demand premium content from well-respected faculty in the legal industry. It was great to see a prominent lawyer who looked like me; it materially contributed to my vision of success. As an African American Patent Attorney, she is an active member of The Chicago's first Black Inventors Organization and provides assistance to African American Inventors throughout the United States. We've been helping experienced inventors, first-time inventors, and businesses (and their in-house legal teams) protect their inventions and brands with patents and trademarks since 2004. The agency would also be required to make the data public. The National Black Lawyers was created to celebrate legal excellence by promoting our attorneys as subject-matter experts, developing a strong national network of top African American attorneys, and facilitating the exchange of timely information to enable our members to maintain their status as leaders. She too has heard general counsel or IP counsel say they dont know any qualified black patent attorneys. We represent clients in northern Georgia and throughout the U.S. BS, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Texas Southern University, MS, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Texas SouthernUniversity (Summa CumLaude, With High Honors), JD, University of Illinois Chicago Law School, Top 25 Trial Lawyers The National Trial Lawyers National Women (Specialty Division), Top Women Attorneys in Illinois Rising Stars, Top Attorneys in Illinois Rising Stars 2014-2021, Lifetime Member of Black Women Lawyers Association of Chicago, American Intellectual Property Law Association, National Association of Patent Practitioners, Texas Southern University Distinguished Alumni Award. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation found African Americans, while making up 13% of the U.S.s native-born population, comprised less than 1% of the U.S.-born innovators it surveyed. With a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry, Dr. Black combines a strong scientific background and legal training to assist clients in obtaining and making use of their intellectual property rights. High Rewards (Chair, F&L 8th Annual IP Conference, 10/12), Hot Topics in IP (in light of Apple v. Samsung & AIA) (BWLA Presentation, 10/12), IP Law Update (covering recent Trade Dress/Patent Decisions & AIA) (Client CLE, 9/12), An Overview of US Patent Reform (The America Invents Act) (Client CLE, 11/11), Patent Wars: The Game Show-Prosecutors vs. Litigators and author In Drafting A Joint Development Agreement, Who Should Own The Jointly Developed IP? (AIPLA Annual Meeting, 10/11), The Exponential Speed of Innovation: Is IP Driving Your Business? (Chair, F&L 7th Annual IP Conference, 9/11), Winning a Game of Inches: Gaining Momentum Through IP (Chair, F&L 6th Annual IP Conference, 10/10), Patenting Business Methods and Other Recent Developments (Client CLE, 1/10), Being A Partner (F&L Presentation, 1/10), What IP Issues Keep General Counsel Up At Night? (Chair/Panelist, F&L 5th Annual IP Conference, 10/09), Extracting Value from IP in the Reform Era: What It Takes to Build and Protect Your Core Assets in Uncertain Times (Argyle Corporate Leadership Forum, 9/09), Networking For Success (F&L Mentor/Mentee Seminar, 6/09), Emerging Legal Trends In Patent Law (MCCA CLE Expo, 3/09), IP Gone Wild? (Moderator and Panelist, F&L 4th Annual IP Conference, 9/08), Strategic Patent LitigationVenue Selection, Use of IP Injunctions & Defenses (IP Section Mtg. By comparison, 5% of attorneys in the U.S. are Black, according to the American Bar Association. Black people and other minority inventors have been left behind for many reasons, including too few resources, a lack of access to capital, and a low level of awareness of the patenting system in general, according to consultant Janeya Griffin. The cost of getting a patent, which can run into the thousands of dollars, and a lack of early exposure to the patent system present barriers to already marginalized communities.