Meet the IP Professional: Rhianna Faye – Coordinating IP Practice from the Centre

Rhianna Faye is an IP Paralegal at Strachan IP, based near Oxford. With around 13 years’ experience, she supports patent and trade mark work across multiple jurisdictions. Her role focuses on managing deadlines, coordinating stakeholders, and ensuring the smooth running of IP processes within a small, agile firm.

Name: Rhianna Faye
Role: IP Paralegal
Organisation: Strachan IP
Location: Hereford, UK
Areas of expertise: Patent and trade mark support, deadline management, international filing coordination, renewals, IP administration

A career discovered by chance

Rhianna did not set out to work in intellectual property. After leaving education, she began her career in criminal defence law. While she initially enjoyed the work, the nature of the cases became difficult to manage emotionally. She found it hard to switch off outside work and began looking for a different path.

Her next move into bid management introduced her to deadline-driven work and structured processes. She found similarities with legal case preparation, but the role required extensive travel. Wanting something more stable, she explored new opportunities and was introduced to IP through a recruitment agency.

It was during her first interview that she realised how well her skills aligned with the role. She joined as a patent secretary, later qualifying as a paralegal and progressing into a more senior position.

A central role in IP practice

Rhianna describes the paralegal role as the operational counterpart to the patent attorney. While attorneys focus on technical and legal aspects, such as drafting specifications and advising clients, her role ensures that everything around those activities runs smoothly.

This includes preparing filing documents, instructing foreign attorneys, managing deadlines, and handling formalities. In a small firm like Strachan IP, her responsibilities extend further. She is involved in renewals, invoicing, records management, and even marketing activities.

“I see it as trying to lighten the attorney’s workload as much as possible,” she explains.

Managing complexity and deadlines

A key part of Rhianna’s work is tracking and managing deadlines. Every case involves multiple time-sensitive actions, often across different jurisdictions. She logs deadlines in multiple systems and reviews them weekly to prioritise tasks.

This structured approach helps ensure nothing is missed. It also allows her to anticipate pressure points and prepare work in advance where possible.

International work adds another layer of complexity. Different countries have different requirements, from notarised documents to certified copies and translations. These variations must be understood early so that timelines can be planned effectively.

“It’s important that you understand those requirements at the start so that you can work backwards,” she says.

Working at the heart of a wider network

Working in a small firm means Rhianna’s role extends beyond an internal team. She regularly coordinates with multiple external attorneys, foreign associates, translators and service providers, each working to their own processes and timescales.

This makes communication and organisation critical. While each external partner manages their own work, Rhianna maintains oversight of deadlines and ensures everything stays aligned. She often has visibility across all moving parts, even when others are only focused on their individual tasks.

Because of this, her role becomes one of coordination as much as administration. She balances competing priorities, keeps work progressing across jurisdictions, and ensures that no deadlines are missed despite the complexity.

Developing towards trade mark qualification

Alongside her role, Rhianna is training to become a trade mark attorney. Career progression has always been important to her, and she has consistently combined work with study.

Encouraged by a colleague, she began the qualification process while working full time and raising her young son. She completed a degree through the Open University in four years, followed by a postgraduate certificate in intellectual property law.

She is now preparing for the next stage of qualification. While her current firm does not have an in-house trade mark attorney, she continues to build her knowledge independently and remains committed to seeing the process through.

“It’s been a long journey, but one I’m determined to finish,” she says.

Seeing the bigger IP picture

Studying trade mark law has broadened Rhianna’s perspective on intellectual property. Earlier in her career, her focus was mainly on patents and designs. Now, she has a clearer understanding of how different IP rights work together.

This includes how trade marks protect brand identity and reputation, complementing the protection offered by patents and designs. The result is a more complete view of how businesses safeguard their innovations and market position.

The evolving role of the IP paralegal

Over the course of her career, Rhianna has seen the paralegal role change significantly. Earlier roles involved more traditional administrative tasks, such as audio typing.

Today, paralegals are more involved in case management and play a more active role in supporting legal work. This shift reflects both technological changes and the need to use attorney time more efficiently.

In smaller firms, the role can be even broader. Rhianna’s position combines multiple functions that would typically be spread across several departments in a larger organisation.

Skills for success

Organisation and time management are essential in Rhianna’s role. She regularly handles multiple cases at different stages, with deadlines that often overlap.

Clear communication is equally important. She must manage expectations across attorneys and clients, often explaining complex processes in simple terms.

Attention to detail is another key skill. Even small errors can have significant consequences in IP work, particularly when dealing with legal rights and formal documentation.

Outside the office

Outside work, Rhianna’s time is largely shaped by her eight-year-old son. Weekends are often spent at football matches or swimming lessons, and she regularly travels to Manchester to watch games.

She also enjoys long walks with her Romanian rescue dog, who she describes as her “shadow”. Cooking and trying new restaurants are another passion, balanced with weight training and playing netball in a social league.

Keeping everything on track

If someone were to shadow Rhianna for a day, she believes the best way to understand the role would be to see how deadlines are managed.

She describes the paralegal as the “central cog” that connects all parties involved in an IP case. From attorneys to clients and international partners, her role is to ensure everyone completes their part on time.

It is a position of responsibility that often goes unnoticed, but is critical to the success of any IP practice.

Looking ahead

Rhianna’s career reflects both adaptability and determination. From an unplanned entry into IP to pursuing professional qualification, she has built a role that combines structure, responsibility, and flexibility.

Her experience highlights the importance of support roles within the profession. As IP work becomes more complex and global, the contribution of skilled paralegals remains essential to keeping everything running smoothly.

Contact

LinkedIn: Rhianna Faye | LinkedIn
Website: https://strachanip.co.uk/

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