About Sean Liam
Sean Liam Kelleher trained first as an engineer and then turned to the law. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Clarkson University in 1999. After several years bridging engineering and intellectual property, he completed a J.D. at New York Law School in 2005.
His early professional steps combined technical work and patent practice. He registered as a patent agent in 2003 and worked in patent roles before moving into a contract position at General Electric in 2006. That stint at GE involved drafting and prosecuting patent applications on a contractual basis, an experience that exposed him to corporate patent workflows and interdisciplinary teams.
In 2008 he launched Kelleher Patent Law and began practicing as a patent lawyer. That year also marks the transition on his registration record from patent agent to patent lawyer before the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Since then he has maintained registrations that authorize him to represent clients before the USPTO. He is also admitted to practice in New York.
Kelleher’s work sits at the intersection of mechanical engineering and patent law. His technical background informs patent drafting, prior art analysis and prosecution strategy. He has counseled inventors and companies on securing patents and has experience handling client matters that require translating engineering concepts into clear patent claims.
Beyond private practice, he has taken on roles outside the firm. In 2017 he joined the board of the Braille Literacy Technology Assistance Corp., a position that indicates an interest in accessibility and assistive-technology issues. Earlier professional affiliations show a continuity of involvement in patent-related associations dating back to the early 2000s.
Colleagues and clients describe Kelleher as someone who combines technical literacy with practical patent experience. He tends to work directly with inventors and engineering teams, and he is accustomed to the detailed, iterative process of preparing and prosecuting patent applications. His practice handles domestic patent filings and representation before the USPTO.
He continues to operate Kelleher Patent Law and manages patent matters for individual inventors and small to mid-sized businesses. His current practice focuses on patent preparation and prosecution for mechanical technologies.
