Laís Souza is a Chemical Engineer and Patent Specialist who joined Licks Attorneys’ Rio de Janeiro office in 2019 to work with intellectual property, mainly with prosecution of patent and patent applications at the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BRPTO), with emphasis on the field of chemestry. Ms. Souza’s practice has focused on analyzing and reporting technical opinions issued by the BRPTO, preparing briefs to challenge or comply with said technical opinions, analyzing patent applications for drafting amendments based on Brazilian particularities, performing prior art searches, and preparing third-party observations. Ms. Souza has knowledge of the Brazilian Patent Statute, BRPTO’s ordinances, normative instructions, and examination guidelines, as well as the major intellectual property treaties.