Glenda Criss L’28 and Sarah Peck L’28 recently placed second in the Northeast Regional of the National Patent Application Drafting Competition. The competition is hosted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Criss and Peck, students in Syracuse Law’s JDinteractive online J.D. program, were coached by George McGuire ‘91 L’96, a Member of Bond, Schoeneck, and King, and an Adjunct Faculty member at Syracuse Law since 1998.
The competition involves taking an invention statement and conducting a prior art search, developing a search strategy, drafting a complete patent application, and drafting a summary of the search strategy and the claim drafting strategy. The competition also had the students write an information disclosure statement (a statement under 37 CFR 1.56 required by patent applicants to disclose material prior art), prepare a slide presentation, and give an oral presentation and Q&A session before a panel of judges.
“The competition is, in essence, a 2 to 3 credit course on patent preparation/prosecution that Glenda and Sarah took on at the end of the fall semester of their first year of law school and worked on diligently over break and subsequently competed against other northeast law schools in February,” explains McGuire.
Following the oral presentations, the top three rated schools out of the nine in the region advanced to the regional finals where they were required to conduct a second round of presentations before a larger panel of judges. The College of Law was amongst the top three scorers from the opening round and advanced to the Regional Finals where Syracuse Law finished second.
“Needless to say, Glenda and Sarah did a tremendous job. Their determination, unbelievable work ethic, and brilliant legal work reflect very positively on Syracuse Law. Neither of these students had any prior experience with intellectual property law, let alone patents and patent application preparation and prosecution. They studied, learned, and remarkably applied their skills. They are both destined for great legal careers!” says McGuire.
Criss and Peck are very grateful for McGuire’s coaching. McGuire is a registered patent attorney and member of Bond’s intellectual property and technology practice. “We competed against teams of 2L and 3L students who have a more solid grounding in patent work and were able to finish in 2nd place. The judges indicated that one of our claims was so well drafted that it could likely be approved right away! This is largely due to George’s guidance and support. We have learned so much through this process, and we cannot express our gratitude enough.”
Dean Terence Lau L’98 was impressed by the students’ strong results. “Your dedication to mastering complex patent application concepts in such a short timeframe is truly impressive. Taking on this challenge during the end of the fall semester and over break demonstrates exceptional commitment to your legal education. The judges’ comments about your draft claims being potentially approval-ready speak volumes about the quality of your work. You took the initiative, you learned a great deal, and you demonstrated how powerful Syracuse Law can be on the national stage.”
Lau was also thankful for McGuire’s mentorship. “I cannot thank you enough for volunteering your time and expertise to coach our students. Your approach of guiding rather than doing the work for them exemplifies the best of legal education. The weekly meetings and patient mentorship made a tremendous difference in helping Glenda and Sarah navigate unfamiliar legal territory. This achievement highlights the caliber of our students and faculty at Syracuse Law.”