'Lifelong learner' Jim Baker Lends a Hand

Jim Baker '03 can be described a lot of ways: He's a chemical engineer, an inventor, a patent attorney and, perhaps most important, a champion of education. It's this last characteristic that has made all the others possible—and defined his life.

"When I was growing up, my mom and dad made it clear to me that education was really worth the investment," he says. "I've had this philosophy all my life. I am a lifelong learner."

Jim's commitment to education compelled him and his wife, Lana Perkins, to create a scholarship at William Mitchell, a predecessor school of Mitchell Hamline, through yearly financial gifts and an estate gift. The Baker Intellectual Property Law Scholarship, created in memory of Jim's mother and father, is awarded to a top student who attends Mitchell Hamline part time, has an interest in intellectual property law, and, preferably, has honorably served in the military.

Jim's journey to Mitchell Hamline begins in Washington state, where his parents put down roots after a life in the military. Jim earned a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of Washington and was offered a job at Minnesota's 3M—a job he almost turned down based on a cold, dreary December visit to the state. A return visit on a sunnier, warmer February day—complete with a memorable backyard barbecue at which his 3M hiring manager challenged Jim to assemble the grill an hour before the other guests arrived—changed his mind. He came to 3M's Corporate Research Process Technologies Laboratory, established a dispersion technology laboratory and worked at 3M for almost a decade as an engineer and inventor. Jim next led a product development team at 3M spin-off Imation Corp. for several years before serving as vice president of research at Samsung Information Systems of America.

Shortly after arriving at 3M, Jim was asked to be a rebuttal witness in 3M patent litigation. The trial attorneys from Fish and Richardson working on the case told him he handled himself well in court and should consider going to law school, an idea that wasn't lost on Jim. But the timing wasn't right. He was just starting his career and would marry Lana in only a few months.

Jim did, however, become more involved in the legal aspects of inventing. He began by assisting with drafting portions of his own patent applications. And that kept him busy: Jim is named as an inventor on 76 issued U.S. patents. Then, while at Imation, Jim became a registered patent agent and almost immediately decided to attend law school, believing, he says, that continuing education is the only real job security and the best way to make career advancement a reality.

Jim chose to attend William Mitchell because he could continue working and attend classes at night. He knew right away that he made the right decision. So did his wife: Lana jokes that Jim looked like a kid in a candy store every time he headed off to class.

"They were some of the best years of my life so far," Jim says. "I remember being able to go to class every night and thinking of it as a mini mental vacation. For me, law school was almost a recreational activity, both intellectually challenging and physically enjoyable. It was a high point of my educational career to go to law school at William Mitchell."

"They were some of the best years of my life so far," Jim says. "I remember being able to go to class every night and thinking of it as a mini mental vacation. For me, law school was almost a recreational activity, both intellectually challenging and physically enjoyable. It was a high point of my educational career to go to law school at William Mitchell."

With a successful intellectual property law career established, Jim knew he wanted to give something back to Mitchell Hamline. He started by volunteering his time. As a law student, Jim had found his participation in the Giles Sutherland Rich intellectual property moot court invaluable in honing his legal research, reasoning and advocacy skills, so he's been coaching Mitchell Hamline's Giles Rich teams every year since law school graduation. Under Jim's tutelage, the team has won the Minnesota Intellectual Property Law Association's MIPLA Cup pre-competition three times, placed teams in the final round all five years of the MIPLA Cup's existence and advanced teams to the national finals three years in a row from 2005 to 2007. Jim also helped develop and co-teaches Mitchell Hamline's IP appellate practice course, a pre-requisite for IP moot court participation.

Jim and Lana decided to give financially to Mitchell Hamline after discussing their goals for retirement, balancing their daughter's best interests and considering their legacies.

"Everybody wants to leave some kind of legacy," Jim says. "For me, the legacy I want to leave is the people legacy, law students whose lives I have touched in a positive way. At the end of my career, whenever that happens, I want to be able to look back and see hundreds of young attorneys that I've helped to become better attorneys through my teaching, or my coaching or through the Baker IP Law Scholarship."

Jim and Lana currently support the Baker IP Law Scholarship with an annual donation matched by a 3M donation to Mitchell Hamline’s general fund. Although Jim's legacy as a champion of education has only just begun, he has high hopes for the future. Jim and Lana have structured their estate so that the bulk of Jim's retirement plan will eventually permanently endow the scholarship.