Patent Attorney Salary

Visas, Permits, Passports and Naturalization
1
Hi, could you help me out on how much should I earn as a Patent Attorney at a small private practice in Zurich?

Age:30

Years in the company: 4

Qualification: University degree

Languages: English (advanced level, almost native), German (medium, TELC level C1), Polish (mother tongue)

By how much should this salary increase if I pass the European Qualifying Examination (for those who don't know: its THE most difficult and important exam in the field)

Thanks

2

Fifty quid, but not every day

3
83073 CHFs per 9.12 months. That's how it's calculated here.

4
ahem... shouldn't have at least an idea of it after 4 years?

5
What do you mean by "per 9.12 months"? THX

Very smart....

I know how much I earn, but I am curious how much I SHOULD earn.

6
I think I should rephrase it... what I meant was that being in that position for the last 4 years, you have probably an idea of how much you should be earning by virtue of talking to colleagues / other lawyers in the same position. Alternatively, try to talk to employment agencies and see if there is demands in your field, usually the higher the demand, the higher the salary that you should ask.

no joke was intended, but I can see how it came across that way

7
Before going to an agency I was curious how much other companies pay.

I do know the salaries of my colleagues for example which is about 100k/year with more or less the same experience.

However, I wonder how other companies pay.

How about the second question? , i.e. increase after successful qualifying examination?

Thanks

8
(My purpose for the quote above will be clear from the end of the post)

Sorry that I can't help you with your query (I'm not in the Swiss IP market). However, generally speaking, it's very hard to estimate patent attorney salaries anywhere, since it is quite a specialized profession (not enough numbers for good stats.). My gut feeling / guess would be for you to work out how much money you bring into your firm based on your charge-out rate and the number of hours you bill, and then work out how much you will bring in on the charge-out rate they have for a newly qualified PA, assuming you bill the same number of hours, and increase your present wages by the same percentage. (The pay increase may be higher since you are now more employable to other firms and companies, and therefore more able to leave - but this depends on demand for your services... the main factor in how much they will be willing to pay you).

I am actually at a similar level of experience to you (albeit foreign qualified and non-German speaking... yet), and in truth would love to get more information from you regarding the market in Zurich and Switzerland.

When you said your colleagues make about 100k, I assume you meant non-qualified (or else you wouldn't be asking). Please confirm this is so.

Additionally, can you tell me if the patent market is depressed/stable/booming in Zurich?

Thanks!!

9
Further to what I said above, another generalisation... The larger/top tier IP firms will pay more than the smaller firms (since they charge out at higher rates and attract the big clients who can supply continuous work). In-house patent attorneys at companies (i.e. in industry) will generally get paid less than at the IP firms (but usually work more reasonable hours ).

10

Albert Einstein made only 45.-

11
Sorry - just realized that the "100,000" you mentioned was about post-grad...

In any case, the rest of the comments (top-tier vs...) should help.

12
Yes, 100k for non-qualified.

Thanks all for the replies. Th argument "how much more will your company be able to charge you per hour after getting qualified" is really helpful. After all its all about how much you produce, isn't it?

13
About the market in ZH? It depends on the field as well and the qualifications. If you're in "pharma" then your best bet is with one of the large firms in Basel (within commuting distance ? from ZH).

Swiss qualifying examination is about to be introduced so if you miss the "grandfather clause" you'll have to take the exam (in German). This will be a great factor in a few years in addition to the EQE.