While protecting his clients’ innovations as an attorney, Shuang Zhao draws on more than a decade of experience as an engineer. He knows that the value of a patent counsel lies in their ability to understand a client’s technology and business case, identify potential legal issues the client may encounter in protecting its patent assets, and work with the client to devise and implement a strategy to address those issues beforehand.

Shuang has seen from his past experience as an IP litigation attorney the importance of identifying potential loopholes in patent drafting and fixing them before they become real problems. “Having an engineering background lays the foundation for me to understand the complexity of my client’s technology, and makes me appreciate the hard work behind and the value of the client’s innovations,” he says. “On the other hand, practical legal experience, especially that from real-world litigation and post-grant practice, allows me to anticipate what bad guys will try to do to steal my client’s intellectual property and prevent that from the onset.”