Trademark Operations Manager

Fenwick & West; Seattle (WA); Hybrid; USD 115,000 - 173,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Life insurance

HSA/FSA

Wellbeing program

Job summary

Fenwick & West seeks a Trademark Operations Manager to lead administrative and operational functions for the trademark practice. This role manages paralegals, transfers, and practice assistants, and aligns workflows with firm goals. The position supports attorneys and leadership, drives process improvements, and fosters accountability across the team.

Based in the U.S. with a hybrid work arrangement, the role emphasizes leadership, training, and staying current on USPTO rules.

Qualifications

• Minimum 6 years of experience in trademark prosecution operations, with 3–4 years in a leadership capacity.
• Bachelor's Degree required.
• Strong leadership, coaching, and development of teams; collaboration with attorneys and support staff.

Responsibilities

• Lead Trademark Paralegals and oversee performance management, workflow planning, and team accountability.
• Manage billable targets and productivity metrics for the team.
• Oversee onboarding, training, and professional development for paralegals.
• Directly manage the Trademark Transfer Specialist and Practice Assistants; oversee related workflows.
• Develop and maintain procedural manuals and workflow documentation.
• Provide leadership and coordination with attorneys and leadership; monitor regulatory changes and communicate updates.

Skills

Trademark prosecution

People management

Docketing systems

AI in legal operations

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Trademark docketing software

Practice management systems

Job description

Job Description Summary

The Trademark Operations Manager is responsible for leading the administrative and operational functions of the Trademark practice. This role provides leadership and management to trademark support staff, ensures efficient workflows, maintains high-quality service delivery, and partners with trademark attorneys, paralegals and leadership to support business objectives. The Manager will play a key leadership role in developing team members, optimizing processes, and driving consistency and accountability across trademark operations. This position can be based in any of our U.S. office locations and offers a hybrid work arrangement, allowing you to work both from home and at your designated Fenwick office. The frequency of in‑office work will be determined by business needs and guided by your department's directives.

Job Description

Strategic Leadership & Planning

• Provide leadership and management of Trademark Paralegals, including performance management, workflow planning, and team accountability.
• Manage and monitor billable targets and productivity metrics for Trademark Paralegals.
• Lead onboarding, training, and ongoing professional development for Trademark Paralegals.
• Directly manage the Trademark Transfer Specialist, including oversight of all trademark transfer‑in and transfer‑out processes.
• Directly manage the Trademark Practice Assistants and oversee all related administrative workflows.
• Create, maintain, and update trademark paralegal procedural manuals and workflow documentation.
• Foster a collaborative, high‑performance team culture focused on accountability, engagement, and continuous improvement.

Operational Excellence

• Oversee and optimize trademark workflows to ensure timely, accurate, and consistent execution of trademark matters.
• Monitor workload distribution and proactively reassign resources to meet business needs and deadlines.
• Identify operational bottlenecks and implement process improvements to enhance efficiency and service quality.
• Collaborate with the trademark practice support lawyer to develop and maintain a resource page for trademark professional staff, ensuring content stays current, well‑organized, and useful to the team.

Leadership & Team Development

• Serve as a key liaison between trademark attorneys, paralegals, practice leadership, and support teams.
• Monitor developments in trademark law, USPTO practice, and relevant procedural rules; assess their impact on the team's operations, forms, and workflows; implement necessary changes; and communicate updates to the team, providing training as needed. Provide operational insights and recommendations to leadership to support staffing, capacity planning, and business growth.
• Support change management initiatives and lead the implementation of new processes, tools, or organizational changes.
• Model strong leadership behaviors, including clear communication, coaching, accountability, and professional integrity.
• This role requires quarterly travel to firm offices where we have Trademark team members.

Desired Skills & Qualifications

• Comprehensive expertise in U.S. and foreign trademark prosecution processes, docketing systems, and trademark operations infrastructure.
• Proven people‑management experience, including leading, coaching, and developing teams.
• Experience with trademark docketing and practice management systems preferred.
• We're a team that embraces AI and innovation as part of how we work. We're looking for people who are curious about new tools, willing to experiment, and open to evolving how they do their best work.
• Outstanding written, verbal, and organizational skills, with discretion and professionalism in handling confidential information.

Reporting to Senior Trademark & Copyright Practice Support Manager, the ideal candidate will have minimum of 6 years of experience in trademark prosecution operations, with at least 3 - 4 years in a leadership capacity. Bachelor's Degree required.

Benefits and Compensation Details

At Fenwick, we believe that our partners and employees are our most important asset. Helping you and your families achieve and maintain good health - physical, emotional, and financial - is the reason we offer a comprehensive benefit program. We provide benefits to eligible employees under plans such as Healthcare, Life Insurance, Health Savings Accounts, Flexible Spending Accounts, and Wellbeing. Except as otherwise required by law, temporary employees are generally not entitled to these benefits.

The Anticipated Range For This Position Is

$115,000 - $172,750

Depending on the role, the actual base salary offered may depend upon a variety of factors, including without limitation, the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and if applicable, the location in which the applicant lives and/or from which they will be performing the job.

A discretionary bonus for eligible employees may also be available based on performance. Additional information about employee eligibility for benefits and discretionary bonus will be made available upon request.