[AskewEgret]

Unmentioned in the linked article is the fact that sitting for the Patent Bar exam with the USPTO does not require a law degree but instead it requires an engineering or hard science degree.

If you like the idea of working with patents, trademarks and copyrights, you may wish to take that route. A lot of Computer Science programs at universities don't meet the requirements and you'd need to supplement your existing degree with laboratory chemistry, physics or biology classes at your local decently accredited college.

[richardfontana]

Patent agents - the term for a non-lawyer who passes the patent bar exam and gets a USPTO registration - are qualified to directly file for patents, and tend to be used by law firms for other analytical tasks requiring technical expertise. However, they tend not to be involved in trademark work, nor copyright work, for a variety of reasons.