Piotr Mach celebrates exam success

Progression and learning is absolutely vital for us here at Wynne-Jones IP.

Which is why we are thrilled that Piotr Mach has passed his necessary exams to become an European Patent Attorney.

To celebrate his fantastic success, we’ve caught up with Piotr to find out all the details on his exams, how he celebrated, and what’s next for Wynne-Jones’s newest European Patent Attorney.

What did you pass?

I passed Paper D. This one was the last one out of 5 exams required to become a European Patent Attorney, which means I am new fully EP qualified. 

When did you pass?

The exam session this year was late February and the final results arrived late July.

How much studying and preparation did it take? How long did you study?

My preparation began in November 2017. Paper D is an exam checking your legal knowledge and skills, and therefore is regarded by many as requiring the biggest amount of preparation. I spent some time in the evenings every weekday, and took longer study sessions every weekend. As I rough and total figure, I probably did around 200 hours of studying.

Were there any particular areas you found challenging? If so, why?

The legal questions in this exam paper often relate to obscure areas of law and are combined with practical situation. The biggest challenge for me was effectively analyse and solve these legal problems in a limited time (5.5 hours).  The exams are pen-and-paper and because we are not used to handwriting anymore, preparing over 20-page answer was non-trivial.

Were you relieved when you found out you’d passed?

Absolutely! Qualifying as an attorney is a marathon that begins as soon as you start at the job. Because of so many difficult exams to pass, a great deal of persistence and discipline is required. It is very likely that not all of the exams will be passed on the first go, and there is no resit session soon after the main session, which means you have to repeat the exam the following year. All that makes qualifying a big event worth celebrating!

Who was the first person you told and what did they say?

I told my wife first and she was as happy as I was. We had a big celebration – studying and doing exams is not the best fit with family life.

How did you celebrate?

I organised a get-together with my family and we had some after work drinks with my colleagues.

Now that you’ve qualified, what’s next? Does this enable you to work on any new projects or with new clients?

The next thing is to gradually acquire more independence and responsibilities. I am also still working towards my UK qualifications, so the journey is not over for me yet.

Are you thrilled to have had the opportunity to become a qualified attorney with Wynne-Jones?

There was a great deal of invaluable support from WJ for which I am grateful.

Would you encourage others to go for it?

Qualifying is a great challenge and getting to the finish line eventually is a wonderful experience. I love the work of patent attorney and I definitely encourage other trainees to work towards qualification as early as possible.