Student Spotlight: Tongyao Su, MIP ’24, JD ’26

Alerted by a friend that a stranger was selling mugs on the internet featuring a floral scene she had painted, Tongyao Su, MIP ’24, JD ’26 was determined to stop the unlawful use of her work.

“I tried to take down the infringing link,” explains Su. “I was trying all different ways to take those links down, but it felt like an extended game of whack-a-mole; I’d take down one link and there would be five more.”

Frustrated by her own experience, Su became determined to figure out how she could protect other artists from similar instances of copyright infringement. Buoyed by that resolve, Su became a paralegal at Wanhuida Intellectual Property (IP) law firm in China, which specializes in trademark law, but “after working for a while, I discovered I didn’t have a legal background and that was actually hindering my work, my efficiency, and my ability to take on more advanced cases like my colleagues.”

Education in America was not a new concept to Su, who came from China to study psychology and studio art at Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania. When she learned about UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law, and its reputation as an IP powerhouse, she applied and began a path toward a solution. While she intended to earn a Master’s in Intellectual Property (MIP), Su started to feel that her master’s degree alone would not be enough to give her the desired level of knowledge in the field. So, she decided to stay on to pursue a Juris Doctor (JD) to gain a deeper understanding of the fundamental areas of law that underpin intellectual property law.

Now in her second year of the three-year program, Su is finding law school demanding but rewarding. She has particularly enjoyed classes in copyright  and civil procedure (she’s currently a teaching assistant in the class taught by Professor Michael Dube). In addition, she obtained client experiences and trademark practice skills in the Intellectual Property and Transaction Clinic and is further developing relevant skills in the Advanced IP Clinic with Professor Cassandra LaRae-Perez. Su has found the legal research and analytical skills she’s developed to be valuable assets toward her future as an IP attorney galvanized by the knowledge required to effectively protect creators’ rights.

In addition to her scholarly pursuits, Su has prioritized finding a balance between her academic and social lives. In her free time, she continues to create, focusing primarily on vibrant acrylic paintings of flowers and landscapes and using art to decompress from the demands of law school. She notes that she has found great inspiration from the beautiful nature in New Hampshire and around New England.

“That’s one of the reasons I decided to come [to UNH Franklin Pierce],” she says. “I saw those beautiful forests in photos with all the saturated colors you can imagine and then I came and saw the real places, and they’re beautiful.”

Su is encouraging other students to join her in using art to unwind and has started an art club to share her knowledge with others, hoping they might also find joy and serenity through creative projects. She has been actively involved in many other ways on campus, sharing her Chinese cultural traditions with the UNH Franklin Pierce community, including her skills in calligraphy; writing Lunar New Year banners for the school to honor a Chinese tradition of praying for good wishes in the upcoming year; and playing guzheng, a traditional Chinese stringed musical instrument, at Lunar New Year celebrations. 

While she’s not sure what the future holds, for now Su is looking forward to completing her JD. Wanhuida is looking to establish a branch in San Francisco, and that may be Su’s first stop after law school. This past summer, she returned to the firm to work and discovered that her education at UNH Franklin Pierce had already made her more effective.

“If I get assigned the same job, I can now finish it in a shorter amount of time because I know better techniques and have better thinking skills,” she explains. “And I also discovered the legal research technique. I have definitely become more valuable, and I’m proud to say that.”

As for the copyright infringement she faced on her own painting, Su is still working on a solution, armed with the same determination that led her to the law in the first place.

To learn more about other international students at UNH Franklin Pierce and how their legal education enhanced their careers, visit: https://law.unh.edu/join-powerhouse, and contact admissions@law.unh.edu.