Patent Attorney

Description:

This position is located at the Naval Research Laboratory.

This is a public notice flyer to notify interested applicants of anticipated vacancies. Applications will not be accepted through this flyer. Interested applicants must follow the directions in the "How to Apply" section of this flyer to be considered. There may or may not be actual vacancies filled from this flyer. Notice of Result letters will not be sent to applicants who respond to this flyer.

Requirements:

The Navy and Marine Corps team offers innovative, exciting and meaningful work linking military and civilian talents to achieve our mission and safeguard our freedoms. The Department of the Navy Office of the General Counsel has been serving the Department since 1941 and is committed to developing innovative legal solutions to the business and other challenges facing the Navy and Marine Corps to enhance the war fighting capability of the Naval Service. You will find our attorneys stationed across the United States and worldwide, working with Navy and Marine Corps personnel wherever the Department's business is conducted.

There is a vacancy for one or more intellectual property (IP) attorneys within the Office of Counsel, Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). NRL is part of the Office of Naval Research. The United States Naval Research Laboratory is the corporate research laboratory for the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps. It conducts basic scientific research, applied research, technological development and prototyping, employing over 2500 scientists and engineers. NRL is located in Washington, DC and has detachments in Mississippi, California, Virginia, and Maryland. This position is located in Washington, DC.

The NRL Office of Counsel is a field office within the ONR Office of Counsel and part of the Department of the Navy (DON) Office of the General Counsel (OGC). ONR reports to the Secretary of the Navy through the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition. Led by the Chief of Naval Research, its senior leadership oversees a portfolio of investments ranging from immediate, quick-turnaround technologies to long term basic research. The ONR Office of Counsel has 42 attorneys located at the Arlington, VA Headquarters and in two field offices located in Washington, DC and Silver Spring, MD.

The NRL Office of Counsel is led by a Counsel, Deputy Counsel, and Associate Counsel for Intellectual Property, and has a staff of twenty-one attorneys and nine professional staff. The NRL Office of Counsel has a varied workload covering the full range of DON OGC practice, with emphasis on IP law, federal acquisition law, technology transfer, civilian personnel law (CPL), related litigation, ethics and standards of conduct, fiscal law, environmental law, and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)/Privacy Act (PA).

The successful candidate will be expected to provide NRL clients a full range of IP legal services, including drafting and prosecuting patent applications, reviewing research publications for potentially patentable and/or trade secret material, reviewing agreements containing IP provisions, and counseling on contract and technology transfer IP matters such as rights in inventions, patents, trade secrets, technical data rights, and computer software. The successful candidate will also work with inventors to identify patentable technology and useful trademarks, develop invention disclosures, and to draft high quality patent applications. On a more limited basis, incumbents may identify trademarks for protection, provide litigation support for patent infringement claims, and resolve patent and copyright administrative claims.

Applicants will be evaluated on: (1) the depth, breadth, and quality of experience in IP law, with an emphasis on supporting technical areas related to NRL's research; (2) their corresponding recent and relevant experience preparing and prosecuting patent applications; (3) research, analytical, writing, and oral communication skills; (4) interpersonal skills, including the ability to develop strong attorney-client relationships; and (5) the ability to work both independently and as part of a team.

The successful candidate should possess a Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university or equivalent training in: biology; chemistry; immunology, cell biology, medical or biomedical physics; biomedical engineering; or biochemistry, or a related field. An advanced degree (at least at the Master's degree level) in a biological; biochemical; chemical; biomedical; or bioengineering field of study from an accredited college or university or at least two years of experience as a research scientist is desired, but not mandatory. Knowledge of the DON, ONR, and OGC is desirable, but not mandatory. Applicants with a record of making significant contributions to the advancement of the DON OGC or equivalent Office of the General Counsel or Law Firm/Office beyond the day-to-day legal practice are desired.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., professional, philanthropic, religious, spiritual, community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.