Q and A with Sam Judge

Why did you become a Patent Attorney?

My first role after graduating was in the pharmaceutical industry.  I worked in a lab doing very routine chemical analyses.  After two years, I realised it wasn’t for me.  Patent law provided a fresh challenge whilst using my scientific skills. I haven’t looked back.

 

What attracted you to PWF?

When I was trying to join the profession, I cast a very wide net.  PWF stood out, with its positive and supportive environment.  That makes all the difference.

 

What’s the best part of being a Patent Attorney?

Outsmarting the other side! Whether that’s prosecuting a marginal case through to grant or winning in opposition. There’s a thrill in overcoming complex challenges and coming out on top.

 

What’s your top tip for any new innovator/creator?

Recognise the value of what you have created.  Both enthusiasm and pessimism can be your enemies. 

Excitedly disclosing your invention before filing a patent application may make it impossible to protect the invention, at least in Europe.  This is the most common mistake which I’ve seen. 

Dismissing your own work as ‘just a combination of existing parts’, ‘just an optimisation’, or the like is wasteful too.  If you have solved a technical problem in a new way, then you might have made a patentable, and potentially valuable, invention. 

 

What’s your most interesting case?

I don’t think it has been invented yet.  I’m always on the lookout for the next game changing invention.

 

What are your career ambitions?

I’m going to see how high I can fly (pun intended – see below!).

 

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received?

It was effectively ‘keep calm and carry on’. I had a good role-model who never showed stress or frustration and instead approached problems by quietly weighing up the available options and identifying a solution. That approach has stayed with me.

 

How do you keep busy when not at work?

Running and flying.  I do a few half marathons a year.  In June, I started learning how to fly a glider.  Being a total novice at something difficult is a good way to stay grounded.