Makan Delrahim, David Gooder and Others Appointed to New USPTO Advisory Committees

"Both the PPAC and TPAC were established in 1999 when Congress passed the American Inventors Protection Act, with appointments and other governing provisions codified at 35 U.S.C. § 5. Section 5 provides that each public advisory committee will have nine members that "serve at the pleasure of the Secretary of Commerce." When vacancies are created on either committee, those vacancies are to be filled within 90 days."

"The statutory duties of both PACs involve reviewing the policies, goals, performance, budget and user fees of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, with PPAC reviewing the USPTO's patent operations and TPAC reviewing trademark operations. Along with advising the USPTO Director on these matters, both PACs prepare annual reports on their respective side of USPTO operations to the Secretary of Commerce, the President, and the Committees on the Judiciary in either house of Congress."

Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick terminated all members of the Patent Public Advisory Committee (PPAC) and Trademark Public Advisory Committee (TPAC) in March, effective immediately. The PPAC and TPAC were established in 1999 under the American Inventors Protection Act and are governed by 35 U.S.C. § 5, which provides nine member positions that serve at the Secretary's pleasure. Vacancies must be filled within 90 days. Both committees review USPTO policies, goals, performance, budget, and user fees; PPAC focuses on patent operations while TPAC focuses on trademark operations. Both prepare annual reports for the Secretary, the President, and congressional Judiciary Committees. The USPTO issued a call for candidates and has now announced new members.

Read at IPWatchdog.com | Patents & Intellectual Property Law