David Kappos

David "Dave" J. Kappos (born March 3, 1961) is an attorney and former government official who served as Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) from 2009 to 2013. Kappos is currently a partner at New York law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore.

David J. Kappos
Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property
Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office
In office
August 13, 2009 – February 1, 2013
PresidentBarack Obama
Preceded byJon Dudas
Succeeded byTeresa Stanek Rea (Acting)
Personal details
Born (1961-03-03) March 3, 1961[1]
Palos Verdes, California
SpouseLeslie Kappos[1]
Alma materUniversity of California, Davis (B.S.)
UC Berkeley School of Law (J.D.)

Prior to being confirmed to the post by the U.S. Senate on August 7, 2009,[2] Kappos was the vice president and assistant general counsel, intellectual property law, for IBM Corporation.[3] Kappos announced his intent to step down from the position in late January 2013.[4][5] His final day in office was February 1, 2013.[6] He was succeeded by Teresa Stanek Rea as Acting Under Secretary and Acting Director.[7]

Early life and education

Kappos was born March 3, 1961, in Palos Verdes, California.[1][8] He is the grandson of immigrants from Greece.[9] Kappos received his Bachelor of Science in electrical and computer engineering from the University of California-Davis[10] in 1983, and his Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Berkeley in 1990.[1]

Career

IBM career

He joined IBM in 1983 as a development engineer and has served in a variety of roles before taking his last position at IBM, including intellectual property law attorney in IBM's Storage Division and Litigation group, IP Law Counsel in IBM's Software Group, assistant general counsel for IBM Asia/Pacific, IBM Corporate Counsel and assistant general counsel.

David Kappos (right) being sworn in as Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and USPTO Director by Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, as Kappos's wife, Leslie, holds the Bible, August 13, 2009.

USPTO tenure

Kappos became Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and USPTO Director in August 2009.[11] In this capacity, he was a chief negotiator in the passage and implementation of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act;[12] signed into law by President Barack Obama in September 2011. The legislation represents the most significant legislative change to the U.S. patent system since the Patent Act of 1952.[13]

During his tenure, the USPTO's backlog dropped from over 770,000 to under 668,500 between 2009 and 2012.[14] In November 2012, it was reported that Kappos intended to retire from the role in 2013, and he left office on February 1, 2013.[15]

Post-USPTO career

After leaving the USPTO, Kappos joined the law firm of Cravath, Swaine & Moore, where he advises clients on intellectual property matters relating to corporate mergers and acquisitions, litigation and fintech.[16][17] He is also an adjunct professor of copyright litigation at Columbia Law School, and of legal advising for start up general counsel at Cornell Law School.[10]

Recognition

In 2016, he was named one of the “Top 25 Icons of IP” by Law360.[16] In 2014, he was listed as one of The National Law Journal's inaugural “Top 50 Intellectual Property Trailblazers & Pioneers”.[18] Kappos was inducted into the Intellectual Property Hall of Fame by Intellectual Asset Management magazine in 2012.[19] He serves on the boards of directors of the Partnership for Public Service, the Center for Global Enterprise and the Intellectual Property Owners Education Foundation. Kappos is also the chair of the Advisory Council of the Naples Roundtable and the chair of the U.S.-China IP Cooperation Dialogue.[10]

References
  1. "David Kappos". The Washington Post. July 24, 2012. Archived from the original on March 11, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2013.
  2. USPTO web site, David Kappos Confirmed as Patent and Trademark Office Director Archived 2009-08-11 at the Wayback Machine, August 7, 2009. Consulted on August 10, 2009.
  3. President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts, The White House, Office of the Press Secretary, June 18, 2009.
  4. Crouch, Dennis (26 November 2012). "USPTO Director Kappos will Leave in January 2013". PatentlyO. Retrieved 26 November 2012.
  5. William New (26 November 2012). "USPTO Director Kappos To Depart In January". Intellectual Property Watch. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
  6. McDermott, Eileen (January 28, 2013). "Kappos: why he's leaving USPTO, and what's left to be done". Managing Intellectual Property. Retrieved January 28, 2013.
  7. "Teresa Stanek Rea: Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Acting Director of the USPTO". U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Archived from the original on November 4, 2013. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
  8. "Kappos, David James, 1961-". Library of Congress Name Authority File. U.S. Library of Congress. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  9. Boliek, Brooks (13 January 2012). "Kappos: Patent system's reinventor". POLITICO. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
  10. "David J. Kappos". Practicing Law institute. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  11. Falcone, Michael (November 2, 2009). "Critics raise concerns at Commerce". Politico. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  12. "Statement of USPTO Director David Kappos Following House Passage of Leahy-Smith America Invents Act". USPTO. June 23, 2011. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  13. Austin, Jim (February 3, 2012). "The America Invents Act for Academic Scientists". Science magazine. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  14. Boliek, Brooks (13 January 2012). "Kappos: Patent system's reinventor". POLITICO. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
  15. "Head of the U.S. patent office to step down". Reuters. 2012-11-26. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
  16. "The Top 25 Icons Of IP". Law360. Lexis Nexis. 28 January 2016. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  17. Lattman, Peter (February 6, 2013). "Cravath Hires a 2nd Official From Obama Administration". The New York Times. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
  18. "2018 JMLS IP Conference Faculty - Dave Kappos" (PDF). ipwatchdog.com. IP Watchdog. p. 56. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  19. "Dave Kappos". iphalloffame.com. Intellectual Property Hall of Fame. Retrieved 5 October 2020.

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