Since his earliest days playing soccer, a local high school student spotted a recurring problem: after shots on goal, play often had to pause so the net could be reattached to the frame. Determined to fix the issue, he developed a novel solution and came to the Intellectual Property Law Clinic to explore whether his invention could be patented.

In February, students in the IP Clinic secured Patent US 12,551,768 B1 from the United States Patent and Trademark Office for the young inventor. With this protection in place, he is now heading off to college and preparing to market his product.

This representation spanned two academic years and involved four IP Clinic student attorneys advised by patent supervisor David Grossman and Clinic Director Vicki Phillips. The IP Clinic at the American University Washington College of Law is part of the school’s highly ranked program that not only provides hands-on experience, but produces real-world results. We look forward to seeing our clinic students help grow the game of soccer and continue to make a positive impact in the D.C. community and beyond.