Maille Lyons

Maille (“molly”) Lyons is a sailor, scientist, intellectual property (IP) consultant, and author! A former USPTO Primary Patent Examiner with a PhD in Oceanography from the University of Connecticut and over a decade of experience examining biotechnology patent applications. Throughout her tenure at the USPTO, she was recognized for excellence, earning an Exceptional Career Achievement Award (2024) and receiving a Bronze Medal for Excellence (2017). She is passionate about science and patent education with the goals of helping parents help their kids with science fair projects and improving communication between scientists, inventors, attorneys, and examiners.

Beyond examination, she is a retired oceanographer (i.e. marine aquatic microbial ecologist) and avid sailor cruising the world on a 44-ft catamaran.