Intellectual Property (IP) Law is one of the most intricate legal fields. Attorneys need to be degreed experts in science and engineering on top of mastering the laws and regulations surrounding patents, trademarks, copyrights, and much more. To aspiring attorneys, it can seem like a daunting task – that is why the team members at Hartman Global Intellectual Property Law are no strangers to taking on interns and externs, helping prepare the next wave of ace attorneys.
“It’s exciting and so fun to work with students,” said Domenica Hartman, IP attorney and co-founder of Hartman Global. “It’s such a niche field. We’re the only attorneys that need to take an extra bar exam. So, whenever someone comes to us with interest in the field, we’ve always jumped to answer their questions.”
When Hartman Global first started welcoming interns and externs into its office, it was through a partnership with Valparaiso University. The Hartman Global team helped college students learn the intricacies of the field, giving them a seat at the table as they looked at their cases and helped their clients. For Hartman, it is important that every intern gets a genuine feel for the career – they learn by doing, not just listening.
“For these students in law school who have an engineering degree, we’re really letting them dig deep,” she said. “We’re giving them assignments where they can handle some of the technology and go in-depth and start building technical and legal arguments. They really get into the meat of the work; they’re not doing fluff or grunt work.”
The current intern, Matt Meyer, represented a first for Hartman Global – a high school intern. Now preparing to attend Wabash College, Meyer graduated from Andrean High School in June after spending his last semester as an intern at Hartman Global. He has a strong interest in engineering, and after learning about Hartman’s work from her son and his friend, Evan Hartman, he felt it was a perfect fit for his interests and talents.
“Matt’s been amazing,” Hartman said. “We’ve really let him get involved, doing things like learning what makes something patentable. He’s done a great job analyzing things for us. We’ve taken and expanded on some of the analysis he’s done for our cases and even sent him out to meet inventors.”
Mentoring Meyer is a unique experience compared to working with college students, as without an engineering degree he came into the office armed only with his high school foundations, passion, and eagerness to learn.
“It’s so fun to see him enjoy the work so much,” Hartman said. “He’s got a long road ahead of him, and as a mother to six children I know interests can change, but it’s been exciting to see him blossom this way.”
For anyone starting an internship, exploring a new career path, or beginning a new field of study, Hartman has a simple piece of advice.
“I’ve always said if you just do your best at whatever it is you’re doing, doors will open for you,” she said. “Keep an open mind, pursue any avenues that interest you, and you’ll end up on the right track.”
To learn more about Hartman Global Intellectual Property Law, visit https://hartmanglobal-ip.com/.
