Alumni Spotlight: Iasha Chaudhry, ’14

Intellectual property law keeps Chaudhry connected to science background

From Washburn Law Alumni Newsletter - Winter 2018-19

Craving a challenging yet rewarding career, Iasha Chaudhry, jd ’14, always knew she wanted to practice intellectual property law.

Recently, the Washburn Law graduate became an associate with Smart & Biggar/Fetherstonhaugh in Vancouver, British Columbia, which is Canada’s largest firm practicing exclusively in IP and technology law. Chaudhry works with the firm’s life sciences patent practice group, which helps clients secure patent protection on their inventions. She is licensed to practice in the state of Washington and the province of British Columbia.

“The work I do at the firm gives me an inside peek into the cutting edge of life sciences innovation,” she said. “From new compounds/methods for disease diagnostics and therapeutics to devices for monitoring health, it’s exciting to see what developments might ultimately have a positive and lasting impact on health care.”

Exciting and demanding, IP law has allowed Chaudhry to marry her interests in legal, technical, and business issues, including her related experience working in a molecular biology and genetics lab prior to graduate school. Before coming to Washburn, she earned a degree in cell biology and genetics at the University of British Columbia.

“When I’m drafting claims for a patent application, beyond just the law, I need to understand both the business objectives and technical aspects of an invention,” Chaudhry explained.

According to Washburn Law Professor Patricia Judd, the multifaceted nature of IP law makes it a desirable area of practice for many students, including those with backgrounds in science, engineering, music, writing, and art.

“It is a way for someone to keep their knowledge of another area or discipline current while incorporating their expertise or experience into an excited and varied legal career,” Judd said. “Also, IP is around us all the time. I make the point on the first day of class that each of the students already is an IP owner and an IP user. Studying it helps us make greater sense of the world around us.”

A native of Vancouver, Chaudhry calls her experience at Washburn one of the most “wonderful, challenging and fulfilling” of her life.

“The school provided me the opportunity to take courses in IP and patent law taught by insightful and engaging professors,” she said. “The legal principles I learned from those and other courses are a critical part of my practice today.”