At this point, I have a list of reaches, matches, and "safeties" for schools. I partially used LSP to make these decisions, but on the "What are my chances?" forum, there are a lot of people who have much lower stats and probably won't get into any top schools. My lowest ranked safety school is #55 (USNWR rankings).

I understand that USNWR is not ALL that matters. But in reality, employers do care about where you go to school..

So my question is, would I even succeed after pouring thousands of dollars into my education if I'm not at a T14 or T20? If I end up going to this #55 school, will it be a waste?

And in case it matters, I'm trying to go into IP law.

Depends a lot on what you are planning on going into, where you are planning on practicing, etc. Law firms do care about where you went to school, but it's not black and white.

Do you want to be a lawyer?
Are you willing to work towards a better job if you don't get the job you want off-hand?
Do you have realistic goals if you go to a school ranked 55?

If the answer is yes, then go for it.
If the answer is no, then rethink your decision.

try chicago-kent. strong chicago placement for IP but it puts you in chicago. if you aren't in the t14, you are much less likely to have a "portable" degree. outside of the t14 strong regional placing schools or strong local schools in the market in which you'd like to live are good things to think about.

So then, my next question would be- should I focus more on schools who have a better IP program, or should I go to the higher ranked school?

GW is known for their IP program, but many choose to go to Georgetown because its a T14. But realistically, which one is better?

GULC is better (even for IP).

Also note: for IP, your tech background can sometimes trump your law school background. Phd from MIT in EE and top half of GW would be much more likely to get a good IP job than undergrad bio major and top 20% from GULC. If your tech background is very strong, you can probably go a bit down in rankings and still come out OK.