Managing Intellectual Property

Senate passes bill to make USPTO judges legal

04 August 2008

Eileen McDermott, New York

The Senate has passed a bill which would amend US patent and trade mark law to require that USPTO administrative judges be appointed by the secretary of commerce

Senate bill S3295, sponsored by Senator Patrick Leahy, would amend Section 6 of the US Patent Act and Section 17 of the Lanham Act to specify that the secretary of commerce, rather than the USPTO director, is responsible for appointing judges to both the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (BPAI) and the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB).

The bill was unanimously passed by the Senate on July 23 and is now being considered on the floor...



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