Woodsworth College Student Recognized for Economics Research

One Woodsworth College student has an extra reason to celebrate the end of the semester. On 7 May 2025, fourth-year student Jessie Schwalb won second prize for her presentation at the 5^th Annual Tech Econference. Hosted by the Department of Economics, the conference celebrates the best in undergraduate economics research from the previous term.

Schwalb presented her paper Do Female Patent Attorneys Travel More? Evidence from 1999-2015 US Cases. Using 1999–2015 patent litigation data compiled by the Office of the Chief Economist of the US Patent and Trademark Office, Schwalb found that, even after controlling for case size, year, and the party for which they argued, women patent attorneys were significantly less likely to litigate cases outside the district where their offices were located.

“I entered ECO225 interested in applying quantitative research to public policy but with little coding experience or knowledge to accomplish that goal,” she said. “This course pushed me far beyond what I believed I could accomplish in a semester. Professor Khazra helped me gain the tools I needed to answer the questions that most interest me and, most importantly, instilled a focus on learning for oneself and appreciating research as a creative process. I’m excited to bring these tools and mindsets with me as I start my career analyzing public policy for a non-profit in Michigan, my home state. I’d like to thank Professor Khazra, the ECO225 teaching assistants, and my classmates for their feedback and encouragement, along with Professor Laura García-Montoya, who helped me develop my independent research skills throughout PCJ461.”

“Jessie made nice use of detailed attorney-case data to highlight disparities in travel patterns,” said Courtney Ward, Associate Professor of Economics, and a member of the judging panel. “This extensive data collection gives us good insight into patterns in representation in patent law. I loved seeing how she brought measurement to things that have not, up to this point, been measured.”