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ARTICLE · 15 JANUARY 2025

PTAB/USPTO Update - January 2025

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After stepping down as Director of the USPTO in mid-December, Kathi Vidal rejoined the litigation department at Winston & Strawn LLP. Derrick Brent, formerly Deputy Director, is currently Acting Director of the USPTO.

United StatesIntellectual Property
David L. Cavanaugh
David L. Cavanaugh
Heather M. Petruzzi
Heather M. Petruzzi
Brian Lambson PhD
Brian Lambson PhD
Alexander Nemtzow
Alexander Nemtzow
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USPTO Leadership

  • After stepping down as Director of the USPTO in mid-December, Kathi Vidal rejoined the litigation department at Winston & Strawn LLP. Derrick Brent, formerly Deputy Director, is currently Acting Director of the USPTO. It is unclear when the new Administration will nominate a new Director and how long a confirmation process will take. Nine months into his presidency, President Joe Biden nominated Vidal to be the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO on October 26, 2021, and about six months later, on April 5, 2022, her nomination was confirmed by the Senate.

USPTO Committees and Council Leadership

  • On January 7, the USPTO announced new membership to its Patent and Trademark Public Advisory Committees, composed of private-sector individuals who advise the agency on its patent and trademark operations. New members of the USPTO's Patent Public Advisory Committee include Maria Anderson,

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