Patent bar review · Chicago
Best Patent Bar Review Programs in Chicago, Illinois (2026)
Chicago has a long tradition of IP boutiques. Marshall Gerstein & Borun, McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff, McAndrews Held & Malloy, Banner & Witcoff and Leydig Voit & Mayer are among the largest local employers of registered practitioners. Pharma and medical companies in the northern suburbs, including AbbVie, add in-house work, and the Northern District of Illinois hears a steady share of patent cases.
- 2,664
- Registered patent practitioners
- USPTO roster, September 2026
- #5
- Among US metros
- 5.1% of US practitioners
- 507
- Patent agents
- 19% of local practitioners
- 107
- Newly registered
- First on the roster in the past 12 months
Local IP market
The Chicago patent market
2,664 USPTO-registered practitioners list an address in the Chicago area on the September 2026 roster: 2,139 patent attorneys and 507 patent agents, plus 18 with limited recognition or a design-practitioner registration. That is 10% more than in September 2017, when the roster listed 2,421, and up from 1,706 on the first roster in our history (May 2006). 107 people listed here appeared on the roster for the first time in the past 12 months.
Registered practitioners in the Chicago area, 2017–2026
Each column is the September roster of that year.
| Roster | Registered practitioners |
|---|---|
| Sep 2017 | 2,421 |
| Sep 2018 | 2,456 |
| Sep 2019 | 2,466 |
| Sep 2020 | 2,495 |
| Sep 2021 | 2,522 |
| Sep 2022 | 2,532 |
| Sep 2023 | 2,546 |
| Sep 2024 | 2,585 |
| Sep 2025 | 2,614 |
| Sep 2026 | 2,664 |
Where they are
Cities in the metro with the most registered practitioners.
- Chicago, IL1,871
- Naperville, IL51
- Evanston, IL37
- Arlington Heights, IL28
- North Chicago, IL27
- Northbrook, IL27
Who employs them
Largest employers of registered practitioners in Chicago
Law firms and companies as named on the USPTO roster, counted by the registered patent attorneys and agents who list them at a Chicago-area address. Company names are in-house patent teams.
| Firm or company | Registered here |
|---|---|
| Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP | 96 |
| McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP | 78 |
| McAndrews Held & Malloy LTD | 61 |
| Banner & Witcoff LTD | 59 |
| Leydig Voit & Mayer LTD | 56 |
| Kirkland & Ellis LLP | 43 |
Patent bar and careers
Preparing for the patent bar in Chicago
Chicago's boutiques do both prosecution and litigation, so a registration number is useful even on a litigation-support track.
Chemistry and pharma candidates should front-load MPEP Chapter 2100, where the §§ 102, 103 and 112 fact patterns for those fields sit.
If you are finishing a PhD or a postdoc, passing before you interview means you can be put on prosecution work from day one.
Start with whether your degree qualifies, then pick a study plan that fits your schedule. The exam is the same everywhere: a computer-based test at a Prometric test center.
Compare programs
Patent bar review courses for Chicago candidates
Our pick for most engineers and scientists in Chicago is Wysebridge Patent Bar Review: the deepest question bank, adaptive study and an AI tutor grounded in the MPEP. PLI suits licensed attorneys who need CLE credits or want live lectures; PatBar works as a mobile supplement to a primary course. The full method is on our patent bar review comparison.
| Feature | Wysebridge | PLI | PatBar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $189/mo or $594 One-Pay; everything with Wysebridge ONE, $697 | ~$1,495–$2,295 | ~$495–$500+, or monthly |
| Format | Online self-paced, 82 lessons across 10 study modules | Live online workshops + comprehensive self-study materials | App-based, gamified question practice |
| Question bank | 3,000+ questions (899 official USPTO exam questions + 419 USPTO-derived + 2,240 Wysebridge-authored post-AIA) | — | — |
| Adaptive learning | Yes | No | No |
| AI tutor | Yes | No | No |
| Exam simulator | Yes | Yes | No |
| Live instruction | No | Yes | No |
| CLE credits | No | Yes | No |
Wysebridge ONE
What Wysebridge ONE adds that no prep course does
A prep course ends when you pass. ONE includes full Patent Bar prep, extended until you pass, and the rest of a patent career with it, for $697 in one payment ($1,417 bought separately).
- Both IP law coursesU.S. IP Law and IP Law in the Age of AI, yours to keep
- Practicum and Practice LabThe 16-module course to keep; the lab's cases and office actions renew with ONE
- The MPEPUnlimited highlights and notes, yours to keep
- Your practitioner profileA year of Professional Plus: be found, with analytics
- IntelligenceA year of advanced Intelligence: the full talent flow since 2006
- Certificates at member prices$97 each, $147 for both
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How we count. Registered practitioners with a US address on the USPTO roster for September 2026. Each city on the roster is placed at the median location of the practitioners listed there and counted in the nearest of our metro centers within 60 km; city and state only. Firms are counted under the name each practitioner lists.
On the USPTO roster for September 2026, 2,664 registered patent practitioners list an address in the Chicago area: 2,139 patent attorneys and 507 patent agents, plus 18 with limited recognition or a design-practitioner registration. That is 5.1% of the 52,220 practitioners with a US address, and ranks the metro #5 in the country.
Before, if you can. A registration number means a firm or in-house team can put you on prosecution work straight away instead of waiting for you to pass, and it shows you can handle the procedural side of the job. Chemistry is a Category A degree, so you can apply as soon as you have your transcript.
No. The USPTO registration exam is open to anyone with a qualifying technical degree. Most engineering and hard-science degrees qualify under Category A of the USPTO General Requirements Bulletin. Passing earns you the right to represent inventors before the USPTO as a patent agent, with or without a JD.
We recommend about 150 hours of study; Wysebridge students study an average of 87 hours, and you can build a customizable study plan around your exam date. Question volume matters most: work through as much of a 3,000+-question bank as you can, weighted toward MPEP Chapter 2100.
The best program is the one that gets you passing.
Try Wysebridge free for 5 days. See the platform and decide for yourself; you're not billed until day 5.