In the fall of 2005, I moved to Ann Arbor to attend law school at Ave Maria School of Law. Having a technical background, I decided to consider pursuing a career in patent law. After taking just my first class in the subject, I was absolutely captivated by it. For those of you who know little of the field, let’s just say that in many ways, patent law exemplifies the common belief that lawyers take something that is perfectly legible to an ordinary observer, and transform it to a nearly incomprehensible legal instrument. Don’t believe me?
Consider the invention below:
As many of you may recognize, the picture above illustrates a Starbucks cup holder designed to protect your hand from a hot cup of coffee. Sounds pretty simple, right? Well now consider the following patent claim (i.e., the portion of a patent which defines the extent of protection afforded by the patent) covering this invention:
A recyclable, insulating beverage container holder, comprising a corrugated tubular member comprising cellulosic material and at least a first opening therein for receiving and retaining a beverage container, said corrugated tubular member comprising fluting means for containing insulating air; said fluting means comprising fluting adhesively attached to a liner with a recyclable adhesive.
See Claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 5,205,473. Still sound simple?
In any event, upon completing my first course in patent law, I was fascinated by the cryptic nature of patents, and decided that I wanted to become a patent attorney. The only decision that I had left to make was where I wanted to practice. It’s strange, because I always presumed that I would leave Michigan for a warmer climate the first chance I had. Well having received several job offers from out-of-state law firms, I finally had an opportunity to take off. Ultimately though, I concluded that I wanted to remain in Michigan for several reasons.
First, I love living in Ann Arbor. In addition to providing a socially pleasant college-based atmosphere, the city offers a large and diverse group of young professionals, which I believe is a positive indication for our future economy. Secondly, Southeast Michigan is home to the largest Chaldean-American community in the United States.
Being a Chaldean-American, this fact played a critical role in my decision to remain in Michigan, especially since a very small minority of Chaldeans leave Michigan upon settling here. This is not very surprising, as most Chaldeans have remained loyal to Michigan since it was the Michigan auto industry that helped establish such a strong foundation of Chaldean-Americans in the first place. For many Chaldeans, Michigan personifies the "land of opportunity," as the state has helped Arab-Americans grow from simple laborers working in factories to very successful businessmen and professionals.
In sum, I’m here because I truly enjoy working and living in a beautiful and vibrant city. And despite the struggling Michigan economy, I strongly believe that our state offers tremendous potential for success. Finally, like the majority of Chaldean-American friends that I grew up with, I am simply too attached to our deeply rooted Chaldean community.