The Changing Patent Workforce: Fewer Attorneys, More Agents, Evolving Demand
The patent profession is experiencing a notable shift. According to recent reporting by Law360, the number of new registrations to practice before the USPTO has dropped significantly since its 2002 peak. While registrations have recovered somewhat—1,003 in 2024, up from a low of 613 in 2022—data suggests the profession is evolving, not expanding.
LaTia Kimmel Brand, patent data analyst at Harrity & Harrity LLP, played a critical role in streamlining this data from the USPTO’s Office of Enrollment and Discipline for analysis. The findings show a clear trend: since 2020, more patent agents than attorneys have been entering the field.
John Harrity, Co-Founding Partner of Harrity & Harrity, questions whether this trend reflects a talent crisis or simply a shift in demand. His firm, which contributed to ADAPT.legal’s analysis, is seeing only modest demand for new hires despite the lower number of entrants. “I’m just not seeing a ton of firms saying, ‘We need, we need, we need,’” he told Law360. He also pointed out that even through the firm’s Patent Pathways® program, aimed at expanding the pipeline in patent law, “there aren’t a ton of people lined up to hire the people that we want to bring into the field.”
Looking ahead, John believes AI may be the more transformative force. “AI is helping significantly reduce the amount of time it takes for Harrity’s firm to prepare patent applications,” he said. But how this will impact the workforce is still an open question: “If [clients] continue to file just the same quantity, we need less bodies in the field. If they file twice as many, we’ll need more bodies in the field.”
The profession may be aging, but it’s also adapting—with patent agents and AI poised to play bigger roles in shaping its future.
Read the full article at Law360.
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