Anyone familiar with Pharma Patent Law? Looking for advice

[TheFinisher]

To cut to the chase Im finishing my BS in Biology minor in Chemistry and Physics and was accepted into a couple in state (NY) medical schools but after shadowing physicians I've decided that's not the route I want to pursue.

I was recently introduced to the prospects of patent Pharma law and believe that's more in line with the career id like to pursue. I've always been more interested in the nuts and bolts of science/medicine specifically the chemistry behind it. From my understanding to really write your own ticket in Pharma law it's ideal to have a PharmD degree as well as your JD, and I've been exploring duel programs like the one offered at Columbia.

If there's anyone familiar with this field and has any advice (job outlooks within this field, how to prepare, areas of the country to go to school, if the duel PharmD degree is worth it, Etc) I would very much appreciate it.

 

[danielofthesaints]

Don't really have any advice for the pharmacy and patent law joint career path, but just out of curiosity as a soon to be medical student, you got accepted into medical school without any shadowing experience?

 

[LittleBoyBlue]

To cut to the chase Im finishing my BS in Biology minor in Chemistry and Physics and was accepted into a couple in state (NY) medical schools but after shadowing physicians I've decided that's not the route I want to pursue.

I was recently introduced to the prospects of patent Pharma law and believe that's more in line with the career id like to pursue. I've always been more interested in the nuts and bolts of science/medicine specifically the chemistry behind it. From my understanding to really write your own ticket in Pharma law it's ideal to have a PharmD degree as well as your JD, and I've been exploring duel programs like the one offered at Columbia.

If there's anyone familiar with this field and has any advice (job outlooks within this field, how to prepare, areas of the country to go to school, if the duel PharmD degree is worth it, Etc) I would very much appreciate it.

Based on lawyers I know and who seems to do very well and is global for most of the year.

Patent law has a better niche verticial.
Now, whether it's pharma patents or what have you... Not sure ...

 

[TheFinisher]

Don't really have any advice for the pharmacy and patent law joint career path, but just out of curiosity as a soon to be medical student, you got accepted into medical school without any shadowing experience?

Shadowed 100 hrs last summer split between 2 doctors, mentioned that experience was reason I started exploring different options in OP.

 

[Hoofbite]

To be honest, I think anything that has to do with patent law is a bit shaky moving into the future. Most agree the system itself is about as backwards as it can be. The patent lawsuits, patent trolls, and lack of actual novelty seem like a perfect mixture for change. I'm not a legal expert but some of the tech patents these days are mind boggling. Patenting a finger movement and whatnot.

Pharmacy in particular, I would be weary. The current healthcare system, IMO, is unsustainable moving into the future. A large part of that is drug pricing as "new" specialty items come out every single year, and at some point costs will have to be cut. Also, I think someone is going to inevitably ask, "how is your monocolonal antibody so unique that it actually deserves a patent? Seems like you kind of just reinvented the wheel based on someone else's product, who also likely did the same". The true novelty of these products just fails to exist, and that seems to be a core requirement for a patent. Then again, you are dealing with a unique industry where exclusive rights to an entire drug class would do much greater harm than good. That said, there's far too much evergreening in the industry to go unnoticed. Reformulate a specific compound to be "extended-release" and gain exclusive protection to market this product.

I think pharmaceutical patent law reform is largely inevitable. In reality, I don't know if it will ultimately matter because the FDA will still decide who has exclusive rights to the market. While patent protection is generally much longer than exclusive marketing rights, it's kind of hard to say if any change to patent law will make a bit of difference.

I do know of a guy who went such a route and I think he was pulling about $300/hr for his expertise.