Dr. Drew Harding is a patent agent who works with firm attorneys and inventors to evaluate invention technology, assess patentability, draft patent applications, and analyze and respond to the wide variety of USPTO actions associated with the patent prosecution process. Drew’s experience spans a wide variety of scientific and technological disciplines, ranging from machine learning and software to chemistry to biotech, and everything in between, including intangible assets that enable systems and combinations of mathematics and biology.

Drew advises on all aspects of an innovation’s patentability and prosecution. He works with inventors, entrepreneurs, and businesses on patent disclosures and focuses expressly on safeguarding their ideas. Throughout the prosecution process, Drew defends the client’s work while seeking to ascertain the most wide-ranging coverage in US and foreign patent agencies.

His doctorate in computational chemistry and refined understanding of the natural sciences and software development make him an instinctual problem-solver undeterred by obstacles. When faced with the inevitable roadblocks associated with high-level patent prosecution, Drew draws upon his extensive analytical acumen to find the right path to overcome objection in a fact-based, understandable, and persuasive manner. His consistently considerate, well-informed, and practical answers to even the most complex questions mitigate the potential for counter-arguments, as Drew has already taken the time to anticipate those arguments and how to address them proactively.

Most of all, Drew’s determination to succeed and drive to provide excellent products is supported by his focus on meeting and exceeding individual attorney and inventor expectations through tailored solutions. As you would expect, Drew is fluent in the language of scientists, laypeople, and professionals alike, and he articulates complicated concepts in an understandable manner. Moreover, Drew has strong communication skills, analytical and lateral thinking abilities, and an eye for detail and time management.

Prior to JMIN

Before joining JMIN, Drew worked at Louisiana State University’s Office of Innovation & Technology Commercialization in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. His responsibilities included creating patentability reports for innovations from the natural sciences and engineering departments; meeting with inventors to discuss patenting their technologies; providing patentability guidance; conducting prior art searches for innovations; and composing office summaries on USPTO guidelines and procedures.

Drew served as a graduate researcher at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, and the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia. Drew designed and delivered projects presented at national conferences and in multiple journal publications. He collaborated with industry scientists to physically and chemically explain the properties of potential therapeutics and develop programs in multiple languages to optimize workflow on high-performance computers.

Drew earned his Doctor of Philosophy in Computational Chemistry at the University of Georgia. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry at Louisiana State University and was awarded many honors, including Hypercube Scholar, Marathon Petroleum Company Chemistry Scholarship, and Taylor Opportunity Program for Students Honors Award.

Outside the Office

​Drew is an avid fisherman. Having grown up in Slidell, on the Gulf Coast of Louisiana, Drew enjoys everything about fishing and aquatic ecosystems. When he is not fishing, you can find him educating people about fish husbandry, visiting aquariums, and raising neolamprologus multifasciatus, small shell-dwelling cichlids, in his large tank at home. Currently, Drew cares for 50+ offspring and their three mating pairs, and he enjoys studying their habits. In fact, Drew hopes to continue to expand the variety of fish under his care.

Drew and his wife Jennifer are both “handy” and enjoy many home projects and other do-it-yourself ventures. They are frequently supervised by their three dogs, Mable, Jax, and Isla, a Labrador mix, German Shepherd, and Cane Corso mix, respectively.

Education

  • Ph.D., Computational Quantum Chemistry, University of Georgia, 2019
  • B.S., Chemistry, Louisiana State University, 2015

Published Work

  • Harding, Drew P.; Bootsma, Andrea N.; and Wheeler, Steven E., “Better Sensing through Stacking: The Role of Non-Covalent Interactions in Guanine-Binding Sensors.” The Journal of Physical Chemistry B, 123, 2, 24 Dec. 2019, pp. 487–495.,https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b12158
  • Harding, Drew P.; Kingsley, Laura J.; Spraggon, Glen; Wheeler, Steven E., “Importance of Model Size in Quantum Mechanical Studies of DNA Intercalation.” The Journal of Computational Chemistry, Vol. 41, Issue 12, 3 Feb. 2020, pp. 1175-1184.  https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b12158
  • Harding, Drew P.; Kingsley, Laura J.; Spraggon, Glen; Wheeler, Steven E., “Intrinsic Stacking Interactions of Natural and Artificial Nucleobases.” ChemRxiv. 12/2019, https://doi.org/10.26434/chemrxiv.11400405.v1