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[strumpfhosen]

Hi!

Im a Russian Patent Attorney holding a PhD in EE. For a year I have been offering patent outsourcing services for my US-based clients. The patent outsourcing takes a lot of time nowadays and brings me more money. At the moment I'm considering relocation to the US and continue my IP practice there. But I do not have admission before the US PTO or any state.

What do you think, whether it is possible to find a job in the US, if I have considerable experience in patent drafting and prosecution (with the focus on software, electronics, etc), but do not have admission before the USPTO?

What would be helpful to get a job in IP sphere in my case? Would it be preferable to take a LLM course from any US university before?

Advice needed! Thanks in advance!

[blakesq]

I think the first thing you need to do is find out if you are eligible to take the Patent Bar exam, and if you are, take it, and pass it. Once you do that, with your PHD in EE and prior experience, you should do very well. 

[strumpfhosen]

For me it looks like an endless circuit - To take a patent bar exam I need to be legally residing in the US, i.e. need to have a work in the US in the IP sphere, and to get such job I need to be admitted before the US PTO, i.e. to have the patent bar exam passed.

Do not know what to do.

[Isaac]

Do not know what to do.

You can work as a technical expert without a registration number.  You have an advantage over some in having experience and PhD.  Perhaps you also have some potential Russian work/connections that an employer might find useful.

There just might be ways to escape the endless circle.

[Physgeek]

I know a woman who was a patent attorney in the EU. She is not an American citizen, and she is not a registered attorney or agent in the US, but she works at a big firm as a technical advisor. Your background in Russian patent law and EE could be a big advantage if you find the right firm.

Would your current US clients consider hiring you as an employee in the US? They might be more willing to sponsor you for whatever visa you need to legally work here.

[strumpfhosen]

Would your current US clients consider hiring you as an employee in the US? They might be more willing to sponsor you for whatever visa you need to legally work here.

Thank you very much for your replies!

My current US clients are EE companies, software development companies, etc. I do not mind they need an in-house patent agent/attorney as they do not have a lot of patent work. So... I think it's better for me to find a law firm. The only question is what firm I could be interested to. All companies I sent my CV did not want to do some paper work so I could get right type of visa.