Why Mcneill PLLC
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Unbeatable work-life balance
We value employee wellness and we offer benefits and perks that reflect that. Take a look at our generous benefits listed below. -
Award-winning firm
We are consistently ranked in Vault's Top 25 Best Midsize Firms to Work For, including the categories of Quality of Work, Technology & Innovation, Firm Culture, and Hours. -
Challenging work
We work with the most innovative clients at the cutting edge of biotechnology and chemistry. -
Supportive environment
We offer professional development and look for ways to support your career goals together. We are a majority woman-owned firm and commit to an inclusive work environment.
“McNeill PLLC provides me with the opportunity to work with clients at the forefront of scientific innovation while providing me with the flexibility to balance my career and family life. The firm has promoted my growth as a patent agent in a collaborative and supportive atmosphere."
“I was attracted to McNeill PLLC from Big Law because of the firm's flexible workload and geography, both resulting from its distributed business model. This flexibility allows me to engage in the highest quality legal work and also have more time with my family. The firm has supported my growth as an attorney and a father.”
Our Benefits

The firm offers health Insurance benefits through Independence Blue Cross Blue Shield. The firm pays 75% of the employee's cost, including family members.

The firm offers generous time off and flexible schedules to maintain a strong commitment to reasonable work hours, a family-friendly atmosphere, and employee work-life balance. Our practitioners choose their own billable hours target each year. We embrace part-time work and on-ramping employees rejoining the workforce after time at home.

We offer a comprehensive paid pregnancy and parental leave policy upon the birth or adoption of a child. Pregnant employees benefit from two types of leave: pregnancy leave and parental leave for a total of up to thirteen to fifteen weeks of 100% paid leave (depending on the type of birth). Nonpregnant parents benefit from eight weeks of 100% paid parental leave.

We are 100% remote. The firm has never had a central brick-and-mortar location and instead uses advanced cloud-based networking capabilities. This eliminates commuting and allows employees to reside in many areas across the US.

The firm sponsors and pays for a free and confidential employee assistance program (EAP) and the Calm meditation app. We support professional development by providing training and meaningful feedback.

Eligible employees can elect to make their own pre-tax contributions to a flexible spending account (FSA) that lets them pay for many out-of-pocket medical expenses with pre-tax dollars. Employees who participate in an HSA eligible health plan may contribute to their own HSA account on a pre-tax basis.

The firm provides an option for dental and vision insurance benefits through MetLife.

The firm pays 100% of an employee's life, as well as short- and long-term disability insurance to certain coverage limits with Sun Life.

The firm has a 401(k) plan with Fidelity Investments and the plan has a limited matching program.
Our Open Positions
Patent Counsel - Biology
We are looking for an experienced patent attorney with an advanced degree in Biology. Candidates must have at least 10 years of experience in patent prosecution and counseling, including experience supervising junior practitioners. Candidates should have a track record of performing work for innovative life science, biotech, and/or pharmaceutical corporations based in the United States. Applicants must be admitted to practice before the USPTO.
This is a unique opportunity to practice law at a big firm level, while benefiting from McNeill’s strong commitment to reasonable work hours, family-friendly atmosphere, and respecting employee work-life balance. We want to hear from you even if you want a part-time position or are an on-ramp candidate who wants to return to the workforce.
Full-time salary is negotiable based on qualifications and experience. We are open to part-time positions, proportionately compensated. For counsel committed to billing 1700 per year salary range: $270,000 – $300,000 per year.
We are committed to equity and inclusion across race, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, identity, religion, and experience.
Please submit resume, cover letter, salary requirements, desired hours per year, and a portfolio listing representative US patents or published applications that you have drafted and/or prosecuted to careers@mcneilliplaw.com.
We encourage candidates to apply from AZ, CA, CO, FL, GA, IL, KY, MD, MA, MI, MN, NJ, NH, NC, NY, NV, OH, OR, PA, RI, TN, UT, VA, VT, WA, and WI. The successful candidate will work from their own home office. We will consider applications from any US state.
FINANCE Manager - Law firm
McNeill PLLC, a certified majority women-owned biotech and pharma-focused Intellectual Property (IP) boutique, is looking for a highly skilled Finance Manager, with over 5 years of progressive experience in a finance role. The successful candidate possesses prior finance leadership in a law firm or professional services environment, with a preference given to candidates with Intellectual Property and remote law firm experience. In this newly formed role, the Finance Manager will report to the firm’s founding and managing partner and oversee all financial processes.
Duties and Responsibilities
Strategic Financial Planning
- Develop strategic financial plan for the firm, including leading the firm’s billing and financial operations, ensuring alignment with firm goals, compliance standards, and client expectations
- In conjunction with the Director of Operations and Finance, prepare an annual budget
- Prepare accurate and detailed reports for management and partner meetings
- Participate in management and partner meetings, as necessary
- Develop and implement financial policies, procedures, and controls to maintain financial integrity
Accounting and Billing Management
- Manage the accounting and billing team
- Calculate, track, and update billing rates
- Assist with mining the billing system for cost information to assist partners in project budgeting
- Oversee the finance response to major RFPs and ensure compliance with client billing requirements
- Generate reports, including matter budgeting and timekeeper time entries; setting up custom reports
- Advise the firm on billing and accounting software and potential upgrades
Financial Operations
- Manage cash flow, billing, collections, account receivables, and payroll operations, ensuring compliance in multiple states
- Managing all aspects of taxes, including working with accountants to prepare year-end tax preparation, including filing 1099s and local tax returns; and directly conducting estimated tax filings, including certified mailings to specific states; preparing quarterly financial reporting to partners for tax estimates
- Participate with team performing annual internal review of 401(k) and profit-sharing plan, perform matching and profit-sharing calculations, participate in plan compliance testing
- Assist with other projects as assigned.
Required Skills and Experience
- Prior finance leadership in a law firm or professional services environment.
- Master’s in finance, accounting, or business; CPA preferred. CLM (Certified Legal Manager) a plus.
- High attention to detail, extremely accurate work product, outstanding time management skills, and the ability to manage a large volume of action items in a timely manner.
- Experience with budgeting, forecasting, and driving profitability.
- Knowledge of GAAP, tax rules, and law firm financial regulations.
- Strong background in internal controls, cash flow, and financial processes.
- Experience with financial systems such as law firm time entry, billing, accounting, payroll, and client e-billing systems (including LEDES 1998B, LEDES 1998bi and LEDES 2.0 XML systems).
- Ability to manage, lead, and develop billing and accounting team; supportive of team members and alternative work schedules.
- Comfortable working with firm leadership, banks, and external auditors.
ABOUT US
A group of former big law attorneys founded McNeill in 2014 and continue to practice high value, strategic patent prosecution and client counseling in a smaller firm environment. Our attorneys are nationally recognized leaders in chemistry and life sciences patent prosecution and counseling, and the firm has been ranked as a recommended firm for patent prosecution for multiple years.
We love what we do! We work with the best and brightest innovative clients at the cutting edge of biotechnology and chemistry. The firm has a strong commitment to reasonable work hours, a family-friendly atmosphere, and respect for employee work-life balance. We are committed to equity and inclusion across race, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, identity, religion, and experience.
- The firm has never had a central brick-and-mortar location and instead uses advanced cloud-based networking capabilities. This eliminates commuting and allows us to hire the best candidates from different locations.
- We offer a comprehensive and generous benefit program, including PTO, flexible schedules, health insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, paid parental leave, the option to contribute to an FSA or HSA, disability insurance, life insurance, an EAP program, wellness programs, a competitive salary, and a 401(k) plan with generous matching component.
- We provide home office equipment.
- Full-time job opportunity.
- Compensation range: $125,000-$160,000 annually, depending on experience.
Contact
Please submit a resume, cover letter, salary requirements, and desired schedule to careers@mcneilliplaw.com.
Candidates may apply from AZ, CA, CO, FL, GA, IL, KY, MD, MA, MI, MN, NJ, NH, NC, NY, NV, OH, OR, PA, RI, TN, UT, VA, WA, and WI. The successful candidate will work from their own home office.
McNeill PLLC does not accept resumes through search firms or other third parties. We only accept resumes directly from candidates who are interested in joining our firm.
McNeill PLLC accepts applications on an ongoing basis.
This employer participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the US. For more information about E-Verify, please go to www.dhs.gov/e-verify.
Massachusetts law requires we make the following statement: It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability. We do not use lie detector tests for our employees in any state.
PATENT DOCKET SPECIALIST
McNeill PLLC, a certified majority women-owned biotech and pharma-focused Intellectual Property (IP) boutique, is looking for a detail-oriented Patent Docket Specialist with three to five years of experience with an Intellectual Property law firm or practice group. The Patent Docket Specialist is responsible for Intellectual Property docketing, working directly with the Patent Docket Coordinator, IP practitioners, and Patent Prosecution Coordinators, reporting to the Director of Intellectual Property Administration. This position will support all aspects of US and foreign patent prosecution to accurately docket and clear deadlines for the benefit of our clients and the firm.
Duties and Responsibilities
- Review, docket, and distribute correspondence from clients, the USPTO, WIPO, and foreign counsel, including but not limited to the following:
- Conducting daily Patent Center review to download USPTO correspondence.
- Creating appropriate deadlines in the firm’s docket system based on inbound correspondence from USPTO, WIPO, foreign counsel, and clients.
- Advising practitioners and patent prosecution coordinators regarding newly received and docketed correspondence.
- Updating docket database with case information from USPTO filing receipts, WIPO confirmations, and foreign counsel correspondence.
- Updating and/or clearing deadlines based on information from practitioners, patent prosecution coordinators, and foreign counsel.
- Manage electronic communication into the firm’s central docketing mailbox, including:
- Acknowledging receipt of correspondence from foreign counsel and clients.
- Filing inbound USPTO, WIPO, client, and foreign counsel correspondence in the firm’s document management system.
- Monitor daily docket to ensure all critical deadlines are met.
- Respond to internal inquiries; generate reports as needed.
Required Skills and Experience
- Minimum of three years of substantive patent docketing experience in a law firm environment.
- High attention to detail, outstanding time management skills, and the ability to manage a large volume of action items in a timely manner.
- Extensive knowledge of global patent prosecution, including a working understanding of related terminology, rules, and regulations.
- Experience using an IP docketing system. AppColl is a plus.
- Experience with the USPTO’s Patent Center and ePCT.
- Knowledge and ability to interface with WIPO, espacenet, and other IP-related websites.
ABOUT US
A group of former big law attorneys founded McNeill in 2014 and continue to practice high value, strategic patent prosecution and client counseling in a smaller firm environment. Our attorneys are nationally recognized leaders in chemistry and life sciences patent prosecution and counseling, and the firm has been ranked as a recommended firm for patent prosecution for multiple years.
We love what we do! We work with the best and brightest innovative clients at the cutting edge of biotechnology and chemistry. The firm has a strong commitment to reasonable work hours, a family-friendly atmosphere, and respect for employee work-life balance. We are committed to equity and inclusion across race, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, identity, religion, and experience.
- The firm has never had a central brick-and-mortar location and instead uses advanced cloud-based networking capabilities. This eliminates commuting and allows us to hire the best candidates from different locations.
- We offer a comprehensive and generous benefit program, including PTO, flexible schedules, health insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, paid parental leave, the option to contribute to an FSA or HSA, disability insurance, life insurance, an EAP program, wellness programs, a competitive salary, and a 401(k) plan with generous matching component.
- We provide home office equipment.
- Full-time job opportunity (37.5 hours per week).
- Compensation range: $36-$40 per hour, depending on experience.
Contact
Please submit a resume, cover letter, salary requirements, and desired schedule to careers@mcneilliplaw.com.
Those applicants requiring reasonable accommodations to the application and/or interview process should notify the human resources manager.
Candidates may apply from AZ, CA, CO, FL, GA, IL, KY, MD, MA, MI, MN, NJ, NH, NC, NY, NV, OH, OR, PA, RI, TN, UT, VA, WA, and WI. The successful candidate will work from their own home office.
McNeill PLLC does not accept resumes through search firms or other third parties. We only accept resumes directly from candidates who are interested in joining our firm.