Joining J A Kemp as a Trainee Patent Attorney

This profession represents an intellectually challenging and rewarding career option that offers scope to develop and apply your scientific knowledge. It brings together a unique blend of science, law and business skills. The comprehensive training that J A Kemp provides to all trainee attorneys enables them to transition effectively from an academic or research background to a professional and business environment. It equips them with all of the skills they will require to succeed.

At J A Kemp you will have an experienced attorney mentor from day one to expose you to a variety of work, set targets for your performance and development and support you throughout your training. In-house tutorials provide an excellent way for you to learn the basics and mix with trainees and attorneys from other disciplines. We also send you on external courses, such as those run by Queen Mary (Certificate in Intellectual Property Law) and the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys. We maximise your chances of passing your exams. At J A Kemp our reputation for training and record of first time exam successes is second to none.

We recruit all of our trainee attorneys in the hope that they will have a long and fulfilling career with the firm, progressing in due course to partnership. As one of the leading UK firms, we provide outstanding opportunities for career progression.

You can find out more about becoming a patent attorney a J A Kemp by reading Lucy Williams’ guide. You can also read the IP Careers Guide to Chartered Patent Attorneys, produced in partnership with The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA).

As part of our ongoing commitment to supporting diversity and inclusion in the intellectual property profession, we will be offering a Trainee Attorney Introduction Payment to our 2024 intake of graduate trainees as part of our benefits package.

Open Days

J A Kemp will be hosting open days in July and September 2024 at our London office.

We are now accepting applications for our open day taking place on Thursday 4^th July 2024. The deadline for applications is Sunday 19^th May 2024.

Our open days aim to give students a unique insight into the patent profession.

During the course of the day, you will hear from our trainees, associates and partners about working with patents. The open day will include introductory talks, skills sessions, and lots of opportunities to chat with various people from across the firm in a relaxed setting.

Applications are open to students who have completed or are currently studying towards a degree in a STEM subject.

We have twenty-two spaces for our open day, with four of these spaces reserved for students from outreach programmes we are working with as part of our ongoing D&I initiatives.

In the event that we receive more applications than places available, we will prioritise applicants who would be in a position to enter our graduate recruitment program in Autumn 2025.

For our September open day, applications will open on Monday 24^th June 2024.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email our recruitment team (careers@jakemp.com).

Apply Here

Academic Requirements

The academic requirements are rigorous. Candidates should have an excellent track record of achievement at school and university with a minimum of a 2.1 honours degree in a scientific or technical subject, preferably physics, engineering, computer science, chemistry or biosciences such as molecular biology, biochemistry, genetics, immunology or plant sciences. We are open to applications from candidates holding or studying for a Bachelor’s, Master’s or PhD degree.

Skills and Experience

The skills and personal qualities that we look for include:

Excellent spoken and written English
Accuracy and an eye for detail
An ability to explain complex matters clearly
An analytical mind
High levels of organisation and motivation
A proactive, outgoing approach
Team player qualities
Listening skills
An interest in both scientific matters and intellectual property

Staff Stories

Kayden Xie

Trainee Patent Attorney

During my time at university, I participated in a mentoring programme offered by a law firm. I initially only had an exploratory interest in how the law affects scientists, but this developed into a more committed interest when I learned about the role of patent attorneys in commercial science. The idea of being continually exposed to new research findings and gaining experience in advising clients so that research efforts are rewarded appealed to me. Soon after, I applied to join J A Kemp’s Oxford office. There is a lot of variety in this career; there is variety in the...

Find Out More About Training as A Patent Attorney at J A Kemp

J A Kemp recruits up to six trainee patent attorneys at graduate or PhD level each year. Lucy Williams, now a partner in the Biotechnology and Life Sciences Group, oversees the training programme for trainee patent attorneys through to the completion of their EPA professional qualifications. If you are considering the possibility of becoming a patent attorney – a career option that enables you apply your knowledge of science in a legal and business context – Lucy’s insight into the early years should help you to form a view on whether it might be right for you. Read what Lucy has to say.