This year, our profiles are all published on separate pages.
You can access these pages by clicking on the five tabs at the bottom of this page: industry leaders, IP authorities, public officials, judges, and notable individuals.
The tabs can also be found at the bottom of each profile.
The world of intellectual property is never dull, but this year really took the biscuit.
In the US, the District Court for the Western District of Texas had its wings clipped for patent cases – and by its own chief judge, no less.
The government and legislature published and passed several important bills, including one that might finally deal with the uncertainty created over patent eligibility law in the 2010s.
Not to mention, the USPTO finally got a new director after a record 10 months with no one in the role. She was quick to make an impression too.
In Europe, the Unified Patent Court and unitary patent project got just inches away from completion – although not before one of its chief architects resigned.
The EU made a lot of headway on standard essential patent policy as well, getting ever closer to a stance that it felt would best serve the interests of internet of things and 5G stakeholders.
Meanwhile, incumbent executive director of the EUIPO, Christian Archambeau, surprisingly failed to win a nomination for a second term, meaning he will depart by September 2023.
In Asia, we saw the first concrete ruling on non-fungible token rights from Hangzhou.
On the international front, the World Trade Organization finally passed a COVID patent waiver, spurring ire from pharma counsel across the world.
And let’s not forget, of course, the war in Ukraine, which mobilised IP professionals in a way we’ve never seen before.
IP offices cut their ties with Russia, law firms packed their bags, and businesses fought to maintain their rights after the public officials said they wouldn’t respect Western IP.
We never thought we’d say this but, let’s hope next year is less interesting.
If you would like to compare this year’s list to 2021’s, click here.
