FUEGO
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
- Joined
- Nov 13, 2007
- Messages
- 7,750
Not to scare you or anything, FUEGO, but the patent bar is actually much harder to pass than any state bar, its passage rate is usually in the 55-60% range, instead of 75-85% as with state bars (I found the patent bar really easy though with the preparation I did). There are also less than 30,000 active patent attorneys, so it is a pretty specialized field (less than 2% of JD's become patent attorneys).
True the passage rate is a little less (although not a whole lot less than my jurisdiction's passage rate). But they let anyone with the proper 4 year degree and minimum other qualifications take it. So the sample taking the test probably isn't quite the caliber of the average state bar applicant pool. And you can retake cheaply without severe penalty (I think). State bar makes you wait at least 6 months to a year (exams 2x a year) and my jurisdiction doesn't make it cheap to retake. Added to that is the fact that failing the state bar means you can't work as an attorney till you pass, but failing the USPTO means you take it again soon (most people at my law school took it mid-year 3L) without real penalty.
So the incentive to study "just enough" and take a bigger chance at failing exists at the USPTO exam.