Sun Lin graduated from East China Normal University, 1986, and studied in the United States with a doctorate in biology and law. He served as Patent examiners in the US National Patent and Trademark Office.
He also served as a senior patent and management legal adviser at Celera Genome and Applied Biological Systems Company (ABI/ Life Technology Company) in the United States, and served as the president of the American Chinese Biomedical Science and Technology Association. While working as an examiner in the Patent Office, Dr. Sun obtained a doctor of law degree from the University of Maryland. In 2009, lawyer Sun founded his own Sun-Hoffman consulting biological consulting company. 20 16, lawyer sun and several lawyers are here.
California Tongchuang has set up its own law firm to provide China enterprises with legal services in establishment, financing, merger and reorganization, technology transfer and intellectual property rights.
Let's take a look at Sun Lin's wonderful career.
1. Why did you come to America at that time?
I set off a wave of going abroad. In 1980s, there were not as many opportunities in China as in the United States. Everyone wants to see it. I came to America.
When did you come up with the idea of studying American law school? What is the reason?
Because I was a Ph.D. student in the United States and later worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Cancer Institute in the United States, I was not so confident in doing experiments myself, so I wanted to change careers. At that time, I liked English better, but students with science background didn't like English very much. I think law has more to do with English, so I want to give it a try. But at that time, I had no concept of law, and few people in China studied law. I should be regarded as one of the earliest Chinese lawyers in law school in China.
I didn't know anything about the law at that time, so at first, my plan was to give it a try. If I'm not used to it, I won't study in a year. But when I read it, I found that I liked it very much, so I kept reading it.
When did you come up with the idea of obtaining the qualification of patent agent? What is the reason?
I studied law school before I became a patent agent, because it is not allowed to take an agent's license in the patent office. After finishing law school, I want to do some work with my patent background.
You have worked in the National Cancer Research Center for four years, and you have started the law school course of the University of Maryland at that time. At that time, you were doing biological research when you were in law school. Can you tell us about that experience?
At that time, I was a postdoctoral fellow, and everyone focused on scientific research. Nobody wants to change careers. Anyone who says he wants to change careers is like a deserter. I had this idea at that time, but it took more than three years to change careers. After that, I still studied law and became a postdoctoral fellow. Later, I thought I should study a job related to my major, so I found the examiner of the National Patent Office.
At that time, did you do research during the day and study in law school at night? Time was tight.
Yes, time is tight. At first, I was fine at the Cancer Institute, and it was only an hour's drive back and forth from the Institute to the Law School. But then I went to the patent office and drove 140 miles a day. Everyone who has been in Washington DC knows that the three places I mentioned happen to be the largest triangle in Washington DC, and I will run this route every day. At that time, in order to be close, I chose the University of Maryland. The tuition of state schools was relatively cheap, but it was still far after going to the patent office. However, despite the hard work, as long as people have goals there, they are still very happy when they come down.
At that time, I had to work, study and study. Don't I have time to rest?
Yes, there are no holidays. I spend all my rest time studying and taking exams. Because I already had children at that time, I had to accompany them on weekends, so time was tight.
You worked as an examiner in the U.S. Patent Office for three years from 65438 to 0997. How did you get this position? What was the daily work like at that time?
Patent examiners is something I've always wanted to do, but I know it's not easy. This is a position in the federal government of the United States, and I can only be competent if I have American citizenship. I applied for this position for a year. I kept in touch with some people in the patent office, and then there happened to be such an opening, so they called me. That job is very meaningful. All my current patent-related work was laid at that time, and I was basically familiar with all the patent examination processes during that time.
I have to deal with all kinds of patent applications and their lawyers every day. Besides, in Patent examiners, everyone has his own specialty. I am engaged in biomedicine, that is, dealing with biomedical patents. At that time, I was the first China native from the mainland in biology department, and I also had the problem of cultural integration.
At that time, the workload was very heavy, and we were piecework. No matter what the case is, it took more than 10 hours from the time you received the case to the time you expressed your first opinion. Simple cases are ok. Some cases are brand new to me, so time is tight. Some people may think that this job is a government department, which is relatively leisure, but in fact, Patent examiners is a job with great pressure in the federal government.
After graduating from law school, I hope to stay in the patent office as an examiner. The work content is also very meaningful, and I get along well with my colleagues. I am also an iron rice bowl. But later, Celera Genomics, a well-known American startup, sequenced human genes. In 2000, Celera Genomics announced that it would complete the sequencing of human genes together with the US Department of Health, which was jointly announced by the US government. At that time, US President Bill Clinton and British Prime Minister Tony Blair also announced the news. At that time, many friends advised me to go, and at that time, for the sake of children, this company was very close to my home.
1. After graduating from Maryland Law School, you joined Celera Genomics Company as a patent lawyer. You have been working for six years. This is your first formal lawyer job after graduating from law school. What challenges did you encounter at that time and how did you overcome them?
I have just arrived in this company for the first week, and I haven't adapted yet. I also told the boss of the patent office that I wanted to go back to the patent office. But the more I worked in this company, the more I liked it, because after all, my horizons were different and my salary would be much higher. What I saw in the Patent Office before was the patent application submitted by others, but I don't know what this patent will be used for in the future. Moreover, when I was in Patent examiners, I often refused some applications and never considered them from the customer's point of view. But later, I became a lawyer and found that different patents have different purposes and different values for customers. So if you want to work in that company more comprehensively, you can consider the patent issue from a commercial point of view.
2. Next, you joined ABI/ Life Technology Company and continued to be a patent lawyer. Why did you choose to come to this company? How is it different from previous works? What did you get?
After living in Washington, D.C. for fourteen years, I really want to go back to the west coast, because I lived on the west coast when I first came to the United States. Just have this opportunity. After all, as an China, living in California is very comfortable. Even though there are many friends on the east coast, the status of Chinese is not so equal as that of whites. There are too many people in China in California, and they feel that their social status has also improved.
After that, you worked in a biotechnology company in Washington, D.C.
Industry organizations are the chief consultants in Asia. Can you tell me about this experience?
This is a very different experience. At that time, I had been a lawyer in the company for ten years, and my work was smooth and my salary was quite high. I have many other things, such as an American Chinese Medical Science and Technology Association in Washington, where I am the president. Later, when I became the president of this association, I broadened my horizons and met many people in China and the United States except the legal field. Biot is one of them. They wanted to enter China at that time, and I thought China needed such enterprises at that time. They asked me if I could be a consultant. I hesitated at that time, my salary would be halved, and I resigned without compensation. But California is such an entrepreneurial atmosphere, and everyone wants to challenge themselves.
Is that a part-time job? )
Yes, I also set up my own consulting company.
4. When you were working in BIO, you started Hoffman Consulting Company. How do you feel about starting your own company? Is it more difficult for China people to start a business in the United States? How did you overcome it?
At that time, I was the chief consultant of BIO in Asia and started my own startup. The position of chief consultant in Asia takes a lot of time. I do some things about patent application, and also do some other consulting work, mainly the bridge between China and the United States. I helped China companies come to the United States, and American companies went to China. This thing is very meaningful. I learned a lot that I didn't learn when I was studying law. Because you can deal with all kinds of people, you can't touch them when you study. It's like government affairs. This kind of work is often done by lawyers in the United States, because you have to understand the law, know how to be within the scope of the law, and at the same time coordinate with each other. In this process, I learned a lot and saw my strengths and weaknesses. Some of them began to rethink the problems they didn't think of when they were studying in law school.
1. This year, you co-founded a law firm with several other lawyers. How did you come up with the idea of opening a law firm at that time?
I've always liked work related to law. Although I have been consulting, it has little to do with the law, but I usually help my friends with some small cases. So I want to work together in the future. Teamwork is more interesting. If you do it alone, your customers will worry that you can't do anything, which is quite risky for yourself and your customers. It happened to be introduced by a friend at that time, and I very much hope to cooperate with them. I am young, promising and passionate. Over the years, I have accumulated some contacts that can complement each other.
2. What difficulties did you encounter in the process of establishing a law firm? How is it solved?
The main difficulty is that there are few clients and I have to compete with other law firms, because I have never worked in a law firm before, and I am in a company. There is no question of customers, because in fact, the business is to serve this company. Although I have dealt with many lawyers and partners at all levels in the company, I have started my own business now, and I will ask those friends for cases in the future. This process still needs psychological adjustment.
What is the main business of this law firm now? What is your main job in the it industry?
We now have lawyers engaged in mergers and acquisitions, securities, financing and intellectual property rights. I am mainly in charge of intellectual property, and all four of our lawyers are intellectual property lawyers. I do business on the one hand and marketing on the other.
Now that China people come to the United States to set up companies, they need more legal services in all aspects. We think it's good to work together to provide some legal services for clients in China.
What do you think of this law firm?
Looking at the prospect now, it's very good. Customers keep coming, and the phone keeps asking. I don't do many advertisements myself, but word of mouth says that our business is busy now. We are also considering recruiting more lawyers to do it together.
1. Will China people encounter more difficulties in American social life and be more difficult to integrate into society? You stayed in America for a long time. Can you tell me about your experience?
I have been in America for 30 years and met all kinds of people. At first, I was in a red state, then I went to Washington to become a blue state, and now I am a blue state here in California. Many problems are related to race, and it takes a long time for Chinese to enter the mainstream society. Our generation is mainly from science and technology, and generally work in companies, but few of them can enter the upper class of society. Some CEOs will start businesses in California, and even fewer in other States. I think if Chinese want to enter the mainstream American society, they still have to go out and not just stay in the circle of Chinese. For example, if we have a Chinese community, then our Chinese community can establish cooperative relations with other non-Chinese communities. For example, most Chinese lawyers associations in the Bay Area are Chinese, so can Chinese lawyers associations cooperate with non-Chinese associations? For example, I am also the president of China Medical Science and Technology Association, and we donate money to cooperate with an Indian medical association. When I was in Washington, I also combined BIO with the American Chinese Biomedical Association, so when Bio held a meeting at that time, I would also take our Chinese Medical Science and Technology Association as a partner. In this way, the two sides communicate through a platform. In fact, the scope of personal communication is very small, and only through platform communication can it have a greater impact.
2. What do you think is your most important advantage over others in today's success?
I think the most important thing is to be modest. I think things should be comprehensive. It's definitely not enough to think about yourself. One thing to consider is whether I get it or not. Teamwork is very important.
3. In the face of high-intensity work, will there be stress, irritability and bad mood, how do you adjust? How to reconcile work and life?
Of course, there must be some mistakes. Everyone has a family. I have two children of my own. When I gave birth to my second child, I went to law school and worked as an examiner, driving 140 miles every day. This key depends on how to adjust. I often meditate. This is called meditation. There are also some exercises, but don't do too much exercise, which is very helpful for emotional regulation.
4. What is your proudest work experience?
I like my work in Patent examiners very much. Even though I don't work there anymore, I have a good relationship with them. They will send me to lectures, and they will send me to India. Even when I was working in the company, I gave a speech at the headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. These have a great influence on me. I still have deep feelings for the patent office and am very grateful to them.
Of course, what I just said is only part of it. I am very proud of every job. When I entered Celera, I was very proud to help them get their first patent. Later, I went to ABI, California to help our company get the first diagnostic license in China, which was approved by China FDA. Later in BIO, I was proud to help them hold the first BIOChina Conference. At that time, we invited Zhao Xiaolan to give a speech. Therefore, every stage of life has a very proud experience. Now the law firm we run also provides all-round legal services for China company, which makes me very proud.
Can you say that you have done many things that Chinese Americans have never tried before, and you are equivalent to a pioneer, which makes you proud? )
Yes, I was scared at first, and I didn't know if I could succeed, but I was quite proud when I did it. People always have successes and failures, so we still have to think positively and remain optimistic.
5. What is the most painful and desperate moment in your career? How did you spend it?
Now that I am a lawyer myself, the most painful thing should be how to find the source of the case and contact the client. Sometimes I feel a little lost when I am rejected by my clients. Maybe some people who started from a law firm have experienced this kind of tempering, but I still need an adaptation process. This is a difficult turning point for me.
When I changed my major, I went through a painful process, because at that time, everyone wanted to be a scientist, to study for a doctorate, and to publish articles. It's a pity to change careers again, and I don't want to give up casually, so I want to change careers from the first year to the third year. It was a psychological struggle and it took a long time to change careers. At that time, you had to change careers. Everyone thought you were like a traitor and a deserter, and no one else in the lab understood. And at that time, everyone wanted to be a scientist and didn't have much desire for money. If you practice law, others will think that you are after money, and people in other laboratories may look down on you. So I didn't even dare to read law books at work at that time, and I still immersed myself in experiments. Later, when I arrived at the patent office, the patent office gave me full support and subsidized part of my tuition. So what I want to say to young people is, don't give up because of immediate difficulties, stick to it, and the future is still bright.