Qualifications & Experience Statement

Reason No. 1

I am BOARD CERTIFIED by the Florida Bar as a SPECIALIST in Intellectual Property Law

Board Certification is the highest level of recognition of the competency and experience of attorneys in specialized areas of law approved by the Supreme Court of Florida. Certification was established to assist consumers of legal services in selecting specialists in various areas of law.

In order to qualify as a Board Certified Patent Attorney, I have had to prove years of focused practice as a patent attorney, successfully pass a separate examination exclusively on intellectual property law, and undergo substantial peer review scrutiny proving my credentials as a specialist. Only a tiny handful of patent attorneys in the entire country are Board Certified as specialists.

If you were undergoing an important surgery, wouldn’t you want the doctor cutting you open to have proven their knowledge and experience before their peers in the medical profession?

If you were undergoing an important surgery, wouldn’t you want the doctor cutting you open to have proven their knowledge and experience before their peers in the medical profession?

• Doctors holding themselves out as specialists are required to undertake years of additional study and pass a rigorous examination and peer evaluation before they can advertise as a specialist in any given area of practice.
• Why accept anything less from your attorney?

Reason No. 2

I Teach Patent Law to Other Lawyers and Law Students

For the past fifteen (15) years, I have been an Adjunct Professor at Nova Southeastern University Law School teaching patent, trademark, and copyright law to graduating law students.

In addition to being an Adjunct Professor at Nova Law School, I lecture and teach patent and trademark law to other attorneys and members of various business groups including the South Florida Inventor’s Society.

• I believe my teaching patent law to other attorneys, law students, and business people makes me a better patent lawyer myself.
• You really don’t know a subject unless you are able to teach it to someone else.

Reason No. 3

18 Years of Specialized Experience

I have been focusing my practice on patent law for the past 18 years — before the Internet developed and before national television shows like American Inventor and The Big Idea made patents a household name.

All lawyers will eventually get grey hair (or have no hair) no matter what area of law they practice or how often they bounce around from one practice area to another. The key to excellence in any field is not aging — that happens with time anyway . . . but specializing.

• There’s a well known song by country singer Barbara Mandrell entitled: I was country when country wasn’t cool. Well, I was a patent attorney years before forming new patent practices became a trend for general practice firms. Patent law is not just another practice area for me or my law firm. It truly is my passion.
• Wouldn’t you feel better with your patent rights secured by an experienced patent attorney that has spent years perfecting his skills to solve your specific legal issue?

Reason No. 4

I’ve Learned From the Best Patent Lawyers in the Country

Prior to starting my own law firm, I worked at the internationally known law firm of Fish & Neave (now merged with Rogers & Gray) in New York City. At the time, the firm had over 200 attorneys practicing in ONLY one practice area — patent law — and is still regarded as one of the top patent law firms in the world.

The firm has had a long history specializing in preserving intellectual property rights. We were retained by legendary inventors Thomas Edison (light bulb), Henry Ford (automobile), the Wright Brothers (airplane), and Alexander Graham Bell (telephone) when they desired protection for their ideas.

In 1992, the firm made history, once again, by procuring a $972 million dollar judgment against Polaroid for patent infringement. To date, this remains the largest patent infringement judgment in history.

• Simply put, I have learned from the best patent lawyers in the country.
• In my own practice, I am able to offer top law firm credentials and expertise while avoiding the expense and billing pressures that a large New York City law firm requires.

Reason No. 5

I Was Licensed by the U.S. Patent Office as a Registered Patent Agent Prior to Law School.

Most patent attorneys graduate as lawyers first and then stumble onto patent practice as they begin to learn about this specialized area of law.

• However, I was already a Registered Patent Agent before I even finished law school.
• I took and passed the Patent Bar Examination for practice at the United States Patent & Tradmark Office while in my second year of law school. Additionally, I worked my way through law school as a patent agent focusing exclusively on patent law.

I took patent law as an elective course while at the University of Miami and obtained the highest grade in the course. Not surprising, considering that practicing patent law is what brought me to law school in the first place.

There was another student at the University of Miami School of Law who also chose patent law as his lifelong calling right from the start. In fact, we studied for the patent bar examination together, split gas, and shared a ride on the drive up to Orlando to take the exam, and we both became admitted to the patent bar at the same time. Neither one of us had finished law school at the time.

You probably want to know who that other attorney is and where he is practicing today?
You guessed it . . . he is Glenn E. Gold, my partner at Gold & Rizvi, P.A. and fellow Idea Attorney®. Incidentally, he is also my best friend from law school. We dreamed of forming a law firm focusing on protecting ideas and worked hard over the years to build the reputation of Gold & Rizvi, P.A. and bring it to where it is today. Together we make an unbeatable team — The Idea Attorneys®.

Isn’t that what you want in your patent law firm?

Reason No. 6

I am Respected by My Colleagues and Opposing Lawyers

Although you have heard quite a bit from me about my own qualifications and experience in patenting matters, I think it is far better for you to learn what others have had to say.

I’m not talking about glowing testimonials from past clients that you cannot verify. Any lawyer can produce a list of testimonials from satisfied clients.

• I am speaking of candid surveys of other attorneys from respected and verifiable sources.
• In this regard I am proud to have been AV Rated by The Martindale-Hubbel Law Directory. An AV Rating is the highest rating possible and represents the highest level of competence in the field and ethical standards.

I took patent law as an elective course while at the University of Miami and obtained the highest grade in the course. Not surprising, considering that practicing patent law is what brought me to law school in the first place.

Martindale-Hubbel bases their ratings system on a system of blind confidential surveys it conducts of other practicing attorneys and members of the judiciary.

In addition to my AV Rating by Martindale Hubbel, The South Florida Business Journal has consistently chosen me as a Best of the Bar Finalist in the field of patent law. Again, the nomination and selection process is based on blind confidential surveys taken exclusively from other practicing attorneys licensed by the Florida bar.

Attorneys confidentially evaluating the competence of fellow attorneys makes sense.

Don’t you want to hire a patent lawyer that shines under the scrutiny of his peers and professional colleagues?

Reason No. 7

Experts Are Less Expensive

A common misconception is that a general practice attorney at $150/hour is a lower cost alternative than a $250/hour specialist. The difference is that the specialist knows what he is doing and can accomplish in a matter of hours what will take the general practitioner days to complete. If you do the math, you will see that the experienced specialist is the real bargain.

• Abraham Lincoln reportedly said, If I had six hours to chop down a tree, I would spend the first four hours sharpening the axe.
• Well, I have spent my entire professional career sharpening my skills and focusing on excelling at patent practice.

You won’t pay me to spin my wheels at your expense. Your matter is handled quickly and efficiently. And done right the first time.

Call me to discuss your patenting matter so I can take the time to review your concept and provide you with a fixed-fee estimate of fees.

There is no obligation to proceed with my firm. At the very least, you’ll see that doing things the right way from the start is not more expensive.

Reason No. 8

Because I Am Passionate About Patent Law

• What difference should this make in your hiring decision?
• Well, I believe lawyers who love what they do are much better at their jobs, more apt to return client phone calls and keep them updated on the status of their matters, and more likely to be successful and persuasive advocates.

A 2005 Survey of Intellectual Property Attorneys (53 U. Kan. L. Rev. 875) revealed that 85 to 90% of intellectual property attorneys were either “dissatisfied” or “very dissatisfied” with their careers. This affirms what I have known for years.

Too many lawyers have stumbled onto intellectual property law or come into it for the wrong reasons. These same attorneys later wonder why they are not any good at it.

You simply WILL NOT and CANNOT succeed at something you don’t enjoy.

Does your patent attorney REALLY even want to be a patent attorney?

Reason No. 9

You Deserve Better Than the Closest Local Patent Attorney

• If your idea is worth stealing, it is worth patenting — and patenting right.
• If you were looking for a heart surgeon for an important operation, would you limit your search to those advertising in our local phone book or within driving distance?

Of course not. You would look for the most experienced, recommended, and qualified doctor you can find—and travel to him or her to have your operation.

Since hiring a patent attorney requires no travel, why limit your search to the closest attorneys you can find?

All patenting matters can (and usually are) handled by me via telephone, facsimile, email, and overnight delivery without any required in-person meetings. A significant number of my clients are located outside of Florida and many are even outside of the United States.

Today, most patent applications are filed ELECTRONICALLY over the Internet using the Patent Office’s digital filing software—making a lawyer’s distance from the Patent Office completely irrelevant. In fact, the U.S. Patent Office stopped maintaining paper copies of patents at their patent search facility years ago.

• If you happen to live in South Florida and would like to meet in person, you are welcome to make an appointment and come in for the initial meeting. Otherwise, we can have the initial consultation via telephone or video conference. In fact, I have even had local clients choose this option because of the convenience it offers over coming in for the first meeting.

Less than 1 percent of all lawyers are registered to practice before the United States Patent Office. Why limit your choice of a lawyer even further by focusing on the tiny handful of patent lawyers that happen to be within driving distance of you?

Reason No. 10

Because With Me — The Buck Stops Here

Gold & Rizvi, P.A. is my law firm. Over the years, I have seen my practice grow because of my reputation and I stand behind my work.

• When you hire me, you get me.
• Unlike at other firms, your matter won’t be handed down to some wet behind the ears’ associate while you still pay for senior partner rates.

It takes years to get a grasp of patent law, arguably the most difficult specialty of law, and a new associate typically doesn’t know his head from his rear end. Not only that, but associates routinely jump ship to move to other law firms, work in-house for a corporation, or get burned out (from practicing an area of law they aren’t excited about) and leave the law altogether.