USPTO Creates Office Of International Patent Cooperation

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) today announced the creation of a new Office of International Patent Cooperation (OIPC), aimed at implementation of US patent cooperation efforts and helping to harmonise patent systems for the benefit of businesses and others.

“The establishment of the OIPC reflects USPTO’s strong commitment to work with global stakeholders and intellectual property (IP) offices to develop means to increase quality and create new efficiencies within the complex processes of international patent rights acquisition, and its commitment toward global patent harmonization, which both protects America’s ideas and makes it easier to do business abroad,” USPTO said in a release.

The office will be headed by a new deputy commissioner for international patent cooperation, which will be filled by Mark Powell, who works in the Office of Policy and International Affairs. Powell will report to Patent Commissioner Margaret (Peggy) Focarino. USPTO falls under the Department of Commerce.

USPTO Deputy Director Michelle Lee said in a statement that the new office “will allow us to increase certainty of IP rights while reducing costs for our stakeholders and moving towards a harmonized patent system.”

According to the release: “While the USPTO has been effective in carrying out its international mission through such programs as the Patent Prosecution Highway, the Global Patent Search Network, the Cooperative Patent Classification system, and the new Global Dossier Initiative, creation of the new office will enable USPTO to focus dedicated resources to better implement its international patent cooperation efforts. The main focus of the office, working in concert with the Office of Policy and International Affairs and the Office of the Chief Information Officer, is to provide optimized business process solutions to the international patent examination system for examiners and external stakeholders.”

The release also stated: “Deputy Commissioner Powell began his career at the USPTO as a patent examiner in 1986, later becoming a patent supervisor and then a director of the telecommunications examination operation from 2003 to 2011. During his service as a Technology Center Director, he led many international initiatives for the Patents Business Unit. For the past three years, he worked full-time through a series of detail assignments to the Office of Policy and International Affairs where he focused exclusively on international cooperative activities.”