Patent Attorney

Cochlear Malaysia Sdn Bhd; Kuala Lumpur; On-site; MYR 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Cochlear Malaysia Sdn Bhd is seeking a seasoned Patent Attorney to join our Intellectual Property team in Kuala Lumpur. You will shape Cochlear's global patent portfolio and collaborate with inventors, engineers, and external partners across the world to protect and maximize our IP assets.

Reporting to IP leadership, you will develop patent-generation strategies, perform patentability assessments, manage filing and prosecution, and help steer licensing and collaboration efforts.

Qualifications

• 8 years' experience in patent portfolio development, strategy, and prosecution in private practice or in-house.
• Strong understanding of global patent systems and prosecution processes.
• Experience collaborating with inventors, researchers, and cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Develop and grow high-quality global patent portfolios aligned with Cochlear's IP strategy.
• Lead invention disclosure reviews and participate in patent approval committees.
• Oversee patent drafting, filing, prosecution, and portfolio management globally.
• Support patent acquisition, licensing, and collaboration opportunities.
• Develop AI-enabled workflows to enhance patent-related processes.

Skills

Patent portfolio development

Patent strategy

Patent prosecution experience

Stakeholder management

Job description

Change People's Lives Through Innovation

At Cochlear, we help people hear and be heard. As the global leader in implantable hearing solutions, our mission is to connect people to a world of sound. We are seeking an experienced and commercially aware Patent Attorney to join our Intellectual Property team and play a key role in shaping and expanding Cochlear's global patent portfolio.

This is an exciting opportunity for a seasoned patent professional who enjoys working at the intersection of technology, innovation, strategy, and emerging AI tools. You will collaborate with inventors, technology leaders, external partners, and legal professionals across the globe to identify, protect, and maximize the value of Cochlear's intellectual property assets.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Intellectual Property team, you will leverage your specialist patent expertise to develop and execute patent generation strategies that support Cochlear's business objectives and long-term IP strategy.

You will work across diverse technologies, product platforms, and geographic markets, driving the development of high-quality patent portfolios and providing patent expertise to support patent acquisition, licensing, and strategic collaboration activities. You will also help shape how emerging AI technologies are used to enhance patent portfolio development and innovation processes across the organisation.

Key Responsibilities

Patent Portfolio Development

• Develop and grow high-quality global patent portfolios aligned with Cochlear's IP strategy.
• Facilitate and participate in patent brainstorming and innovation activities.
• Conduct patentability searches, assessments, and strategic evaluations.
• Lead invention disclosure reviews and participate in patent approval committees.
• Manage relationships with external law firms and oversee patent drafting, filing, prosecution, and portfolio management activities globally.
• Drive patent family expansion, maintenance, and optimisation strategies across key markets.

Patent Acquisition, Licensing & Collaboration Support

• Support the evaluation of patent acquisition, licensing, and collaboration opportunities from an intellectual property perspective.
• Assess third-party patent portfolios and technologies for strategic fit and business value.
• Support contract development and licensing negotiations by providing patent and IP expertise.
• Partner with internal and external stakeholders to maximise the value of patent acquisition, licensing, and collaboration activities.
• Provide strategic IP guidance and analyses to support business decision-made relating to external patent assets and technologies.

AI & Innovation

• Develop, evaluate, and refine AI-enabled workflows, prompts, and tools that support patent-related activities.
• Help drive the adoption of emerging AI technologies across the Intellectual Property function.
• Collaborate with global stakeholders to foster a culture that encourages innovation, knowledge sharing, and patent portfolio growth.
• Explore new approaches to improve efficiency, quality, and strategic decision-making within IP operations.

About You

To be successful in this role, you will bring:

• Qualified Patent Attorney, Patent Agent, or equivalent IP professional.
• Approximately 8 years' relevant experience in patent portfolio development, patent strategy, and patent prosecution gained in private practice and/or an in-house environment.
• Demonstrated experience developing and managing patent portfolios aligned with business and technology strategies.
• Strong understanding of global patent systems and patent prosecution processes.
• Experience working with inventors, researchers, engineers, and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Ability to assess technologies and provide strategic intellectual property guidance that supports innovation and portfolio development.
• Strong understanding of the intellectual property considerations associated with patent acquisition, licensing, and strategic partnerships.
• Excellent communication, influencing, and stakeholder management skills.
• Curiosity and enthusiasm for leveraging emerging AI technologies to improve patent-related processes and outcomes.

Why Cochlear?

At Cochlear, you will work with talented people who are passionate about delivering life-changing technology. You'll have the opportunity to influence innovation on a global scale while building your career in a collaborative, mission-driven environment.

Join us and help create the next generation of hearing solutions that transform lives.

Cochlear is an organisation you can be proud to be part of. Underpinning our position as a global market leader is the quality of our people. You will get to work with talented, friendly and supportive colleagues who are dedicated towards making a difference. We are an expanding workforce that has grown from only 500 in 2004 to more than 2,700 today. We have built our business to support over 200,000 recipients globally with direct operation in 20 countries and distribution in 100 countries. Leveraging of our scale and global reach, we pursue a breadth of research and development activities that will bring the most significant technologies, products and services to market for our recipients. Currently we are involved in over 79 collaborative research programs, involving 131 centers across 19 countries.

Organisational growth

For 30 years Cochlear has been the global leader in implantable hearing solutions. Our commitment to shaping the future of our industry means we work hard to achieve long-term sustainable financial growth. Every year we make significant investments in research and development, so we continually improve our products and stay at the leading edge of technological advancements. Testaments to our effective R&D undertakings are more than 100 registered patent families and multiple industry awards. Today, our products set new benchmarks in hearing performance with the most reliable implants on the market. As we continue to launch new products and revolutionise the industry, you will experience a new era of growth, change and opportunity right across the business. Now is truly an exciting and challenging time to join our transforming and growing business.