Patent Attorney Associate — Patent VC / Trademarkia

Patent Attorney Associate — Patent VC / Trademarkia

Location: In-office, Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA Website: |

About Us

Patent VC is a new-model venture incubator and early stage venture capital firm investing in IP-moat Silicon Valley startups, combining capital with deep legal and IP expertise. Our sole limited partner is Trademarkia, a profitable IP law firm and e-commerce legal platform serving over 125,000 small business clients, generating $150K–$250K per month in free cash flow allocated to startup investments. Together, the two organizations form an ecosystem where attorneys practice law, build products, and participate in venture investing under one roof.

We are AI-first: we believe the next generation of lawyers will use AI and agents as a force multiplier, allowing a small, high-leverage team to do the work of a much larger one.

The Role

We are hiring a Patent Attorney Associate to practice across the full IP stack while participating directly in the venture side of our business. This is not a traditional law firm associate role. Your billable requirement is deliberately capped at 100 hours per month — roughly half of what a conventional firm demands — so that you can dedicate approximately 60 hours per month to deal sourcing, ecosystem networking, and supporting Patent VC's investment activity .

You will be trained and mentored across every practice area you touch. Whether you graduated last year or have a decade of experience, we will teach you what you don't yet know — patent prosecution, litigation strategy, licensing, and venture deal work. What we can't teach is energy, talent, and AI fluency.

What You'll Do

Legal practice (~100 billable hours/month):

• Patent preparation and prosecution — drafting applications, claims, and office action responses
• Trademark counseling, clearance, prosecution, and enforcement
• Litigation support across patent, trademark, and IP disputes
• Licensing and IP transactional work
• Serve clients of Trademarkia and provide legal support to Patent VC's incubated and portfolio companies across all facets of their business

Venture and deal sourcing (~60 hours/month):

• Build relationships across the Silicon Valley ecosystem — founders, VCs, accelerators, angels, and operators
• Attend and help host events at our Sand Hill Road office and around the Bay Area
• Identify and evaluate prospective investments and bring deal flow to the partnership
• Assist incubated companies (legal tech, AI, and adjacent ventures) on product, strategy, and growth

Always:

• Operate AI-first. Use modern AI tools and agents daily to amplify your output and deliver work at a pace and quality conventional associates cannot match.

Compensation

• Base salary: $150K
• Upside: Potential participation in the equity and profit pools of Patent VC portfolio and incubated companies, tied to the deals you help source and support
• Direct exposure to venture investing without leaving the practice of law

Who You Are

• A licensed U.S. attorney (or patent agent/attorney with USPTO registration)
• Eager to practice broadly: prosecution, counseling, litigation, licensing — a generalist mindset with IP depth
• AI-first by habit — you already use AI tools in your workflow and believe this is the future of law
• A natural networker comfortable in rooms full of founders and investors
• Based in the Bay Area and able to work full-time, in-office on Sand Hill Road in Menlo Park
• Years of experience do not matter. Talent, energy, AI fluency, and willingness to learn do.

Why This Role Is Different

Most associates bill 160+ hours a month and never see a client relationship, a deal, or equity. Here, you bill 100, spend the rest of your time in the venture ecosystem, get trained across the entire IP practice, and build potential upside in the companies you help grow. You stay in the practice of law while learning to be an investor.

How to Apply

Reach out with a brief note about your background, why this model resonates with you, and how you use AI in your practice today. Learn more at

• Industry: Venture Capital and Private Equity Principals / Legal Services Employment Type: Full-time