|
Editorial Advertising General Information |
| Lawyer Gives Clients Patent Advice By Ofelia Saenz, Signal Tribune staff writer 
Although attorney Aaron Patton didn't start practicing in the area of intellectual property law until he was well into his retirement, the path that would eventually lead him to the extraordinary world of inventors, winds all the way back to his childhood. Patton's first interest in law likely stemmed from the stories his family told of two great-uncles who were attorneys, but his curiosity for "tinkering" and his aptitude for science led him initially into the field of engineering. "I suppose a lot of scientists and engineers are at heart basically tinkerers," said Patton. "I had an interest in the process and an interest in people turning ideas into things, which is pretty much a laymen's way of saying what an inventor does." After a 10-year career as an aerospace engineer, however, Patton returned to school and received his Juris Doctor degree from Southwestern University of Law. He has been a member of the State Bar of California since 1978. He has practiced law for nearly three decades, and spent the bulk of his career as an attorney working in the law department for Northrup Grumman Corporation. When he retired from Northrup, he opened his own practice in 1999 and has devoted himself to giving clients personal attention, rather than delegating to staff or support personnel. The same year he opened his own law office, Patton also began studying to take the "patent bar," the examination for admission to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office. He realized that his fascination with math and science was largely founded in the personal aspect of the inventive process. "I had an interest in marrying my technological background with my legal background and I liked dealing with people who were creative and innovative in terms of technology and engineering and science," he said. As a sole practitioner, Patton is free to concentrate on the area of law that he's most drawn to, and as an engineer, that area has been patent law. Since 1999, he has made a gradual transition from general business and contracts to, almost exclusively, patent law, as well as trademark and copyright law. "Although it's in the world of technology, it is still a creative process that people go through in terms of coming up with ideas and then finding ways of turning those ideas into useful items," he said. "That's something that we recognize in the United States, and in most countries, as something that's valuable for society." An initial phone consultation with attorney Aaron L. Patton is free. To contact him, call (562) 984-1750. His office is located in the Bixby Business Center at 4401 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 200 in Bixby Knolls. |