Minnesota Law Students Take Second Place in National Patent Application Drafting Competition

A team of four Minnesota Law students took second place in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) National Patent Application Drafting Competition.

The Minnesota Law team consisted of two Master of Science in Patent Law degree-seeking students, Jordan Marsh and Timothy Brennhofer, and two J.D. degree-seeking students, Carlton Hemphill, 2L, and Jack Graves, 2L. 

The competition began with 51 teams from 5 regions. As part of the competition, each team researched the invention, identified classes, identified relevant references, determined patentable subject matter, constructed claims, created drawings, and described the invention, all according to USPTO regulations.

During the regional rounds, each team member described their strategy and contribution to a patent application. During the national finals, held on April 9, the team defended its strategy to a live panel of distinguished judges drawn from the greater patent community.

Professor Christopher M. Turoski '98 coached the team, with crucial assistance from Randall Ryder '09, Jason Harp '98 of Schiff Hardin, Bernard Cryan, 3L, Eva Tang of Faegre Drinker law firm, and David Rutz of Shumaker & Sieffert law firm.

This was the second year that the USPTO has hosted the competition.