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July 3, 2002
A: FROM MENTOR JOAN LUSK. To read Joan's bio click
here.
One way to combine the two is to become a patent attorney,
or, short
of the law degree, a patent agent. One of my friends from
graduate
school, a PhD in biology, has done this and finds it extremely
exciting to be involved in bringing new technologies into
the
marketplace. Knowing the science as well as the patent law
makes a
powerful combination; and her law firm paid for her to go
to law
school at night while she worked as a patent agent. (The drawback
for me is that the patentable science is too secret to talk
about, as
we used to talk about our research projects in the old days.)
Universities now have offices of "technology transfer"
that help get
patents on intellectual property originating at the university,
and
license the use of the new technology to companies that can
turn the
idea into a useful product. Profits from licensing the use
of the
patented technologies are typically shared between the university
and
the inventors. These academic offices provide another way
to combine
technology and law.
Computers open up new opportunities for theft and fraud, so
the law
has to catch up with technology here. What behaviors should
be legal
and what not? What constitutes "fair use" of digital
materials as
opposed to print materials? My impression is that standards
are
somewhat in flux now. How much do lawyers and legislators
need to
understand technology to define proper conditions for its
use? It
can't hurt to involve one who understands what uses and abuses
are
possible participate in writing the laws.
July 2, 2002
A: FROM MENTOR DANELL OLIVER-COLLINS. To read Danell's bio
click here.
Have you looked at Patent Law? There is a definate need
for people who
understand technology and have law degree's. Many companies
have their own
patent lawyers as well as private law firms have patent lawyers
on their
staff. I would definately look into this.
A: FROM MENTOR CHRISTINE M. KUTA. To read Christine's
bio click here.
All types lawyers are using a lot of technology these days
so if you
are interested in law, it is actually difficult to avoid being
involved in
technology. Litigators (lawyers who try cases in court) use
computers and
all kinds of software to track the progress of their cases
and to keep track
of the mountains of information that are involved in a law
suit. There are
computer lawyers who specialize in computer-related business
such as software
licenses and web agreements. Licensing professionals inside
large
organizations like corporations and universities do similar
work and are
frequently also lawyers but not always. There are also lawyers
who specialize
in telecommunications. And patent lawyers, of course, combine
law and
technology.
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