Intellectual Property · speciality monitor
Patent Prosecution: lateral monitor
Lawyers whose work centers on Patent Prosecution and who changed firm over the last 12 months, set against the Intellectual Property practice and the market.
The last 12 months: November 2025 to October 2026
- 163
- Lateral moves, 12 monthsNovember 2025 to October 2026
- -12.8%
- Year on yearSettled 12-month windows
- 32.5%
- Partner share of moves
- 80
- Firms that hired
What the data show
From November 2025 to October 2026, Sartori & Partners recorded 163 lateral moves in Patent Prosecution. On settled windows the count went from 187 to 163 (-12.8%), a change inside the noise of the two counts, so we read it as flat.
| Measure | Here | Intellectual Property | Market |
|---|---|---|---|
| Partner share of moves | 32.5% | 34.4% | 27.7% |
| Counsel share of moves | 12.9% | 11.4% | 12.7% |
| Associate share of moves | 38.7% | 49.7% | 58.5% |
| Moved up a level | 14.7% | 12.6% | 12.9% |
| Changed city | 30.2% | 15.9% | 20.5% |
| Hired by firms of 1,000+ lawyers | 38.0% | 48.6% | 53.6% |
| Year on year | flat (-12.8%) | flat (+7.2%) | rose (+9.0%) |
12 months to October 2026 unless the row says three years; a row switches to three years for every column when this page's 12-month value is not published. A dash is a value we do not publish. Flat means a change under 5% or inside the noise of the two counts.
Set against the Intellectual Property practice as a whole, the share who changed city stands out most: 30.2% here against 15.9%, above it. Year on year it moved with the Intellectual Property practice as a whole: both flat.
Over the three years to October 2026, 552 lawyers moved in Patent Prosecution, 173 of them partners (31.3%). They joined 176 different firms. 15.8% stepped up a level on the move and 27.8% changed city, against 12.3% and 21.6% across the market over the same three years. 47.2% came from firms with 1,000+ lawyers.
- Partner32.5%
- Counsel12.9%
- Associate38.7%
The level mix sits close to the market: partners are 32.5% of arrivals, against 27.7% market-wide. On settled windows partner moves alone went from 58 to 50 (-13.8%), a change inside the noise of the two counts, so we read it as flat. 14.7% of movers stepped up a level when they changed firm, against 12.9% for the market.
- 1,000+ lawyers38.0%
- 400-999 lawyers35.0%
- 150-399 lawyers22.7%
- under 150 lawyers4.3%
Lateral hires in Patent Prosecution were spread across 80 firms. The ten firms at the head of the hiring table took 29.5% of arrivals (12.9% market-wide), so hiring here is moderately concentrated. Womble Bond Dickinson ranks first by lateral arrivals, in the 6-10 band.
- 1,000+ lawyers47.2%
- 400-999 lawyers24.1%
- 150-399 lawyers18.1%
- under 150 lawyers10.6%
Boston ranks first among destination cities with 16.6% of arrivals. A change of city came with 30.2% of moves (market 20.5%).
10.4% of moves came as part of a group, against 1.5% market-wide.
There were 418 open roles in Patent Prosecution on law-firm career pages on November 11, 2026.
For a firm planning a hire in Patent Prosecution, a flat market means candidates are not being pulled by a wave: the case for a move has to come from the platform.
Firms by rank and band
Each firm appears as a rank and a band, never an exact count, and only with at least 10 moves in the window.
| Rank | Firm | Moves (band) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Womble Bond Dickinson | 6-10 |
| 2 | Merchant & Gould | 6-10 |
| 3 | Dorsey & Whitney | 3-5 |
| 4 | Taft Stettinius & Hollister | 3-5 |
| 5 | Dinsmore | 3-5 |
| 6 | FisherBroyles | 3-5 |
| 7 | Cooley | 3-5 |
| 8 | Goodwin Procter | 3-5 |
| 9 | Norton Rose Fulbright | 3-5 |
| 10 | Fenwick & West | 3-5 |
| Rank | Firm | Moves (band) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FisherBroyles | 6-10 |
| 2 | Merchant & Gould | 6-10 |
| 3 | Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney | 6-10 |
| 4 | Womble Bond Dickinson | 3-5 |
| 5 | Buchalter | 3-5 |
| 6 | Foley & Lardner | 3-5 |
| 7 | Spencer Fane | 3-5 |
| 8 | Dickinson Wright | 3-5 |
| 9 | Dorsey & Whitney | 3-5 |
| 10 | McDonald Hopkins | 3-5 |
Deals in Patent Prosecution
Sartori & Partners data count 22 dated deals in Patent Prosecution in the 12 months to October 2026 and 79 over the three years to October 2026.
By client industry, Pharma & Biotech comes first with 38.0%.
Jones Day ranks first among advising firms over the period, in the 21-40 band.
| Rank | Firm | Deals (band) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jones Day | 21-40 |
| 2 | Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner | 11-20 |
| 3 | Sterne Kessler Goldstein Fox | 6-10 |
| 4 | Haynes and Boone | 3-5 |
| 5 | Duane Morris | 3-5 |
| 6 | Baker & Hostetler | 3-5 |
Time to partner in Patent Prosecution
57 lawyers were promoted to partner in Patent Prosecution in the 12 months to May 2026, 252 over five years, according to Sartori & Partners data.
The median time from first year of practice to partner is 10.0 years, with the middle half between 8.0 years and 12.0 years, against a market median of 10.0 years. 81.4% made partner within 12 years.
These figures rest on 215 promotions.
Related monitors and reports
Other specialities in Intellectual Property
Hiring in this market
Reports
- Patent Prosecution Lawyers Change Cities More Than Most: 2026 Data
Patent prosecution lawyers move further than most: 30.2% of moves also changed city, against 20.5% market-wide and 15.9% in intellectual property, while hiring held flat (-12.8%). And 10.4% came as part of a team, against 1.5%.
November 11, 2026 · November 2026
Edition November 2026. Window: November 2025 to October 2026. Source: Sartori & Partners, from public law-firm announcements, firm websites and professional profiles, checked monthly. Methodology. Spot an error? [email protected].
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