Secretary of Commerce then PTO Director

By Dennis Crouch

President Obama has nominated Chicago Business Leader Penny Pritzker to be the next US Secretary of Commerce. John Bryson stepped-down from that post in 2012 and Rebecca Blank has been the acting Secretary for the past year. The US Patent & Trademark Office operates within the Department of Commerce and is currently being led by acting director Terry Rea. The president will likely wait to offer a name for the next USPTO director until the Secretary of Commerce position is solidified.

42 thoughts on “Secretary of Commerce then PTO Director

  1. 41

    If we can get him to hire one of the homeless guys that stand across the street outside the CVS, we can get them to follow our agenda. I’ll just tell them what to do, and they won’t be any the wiser. LOL!

  2. 39

    I believe when the announcement that Mr. Kappos was leaving was first made, and that Ms. Rea would be interim Acting Director, it was indicated that Ms. Rea had expressed that she would not be taking the Director position.

    Bring back Jon D.!

  3. 36

    Unless I missed something (which is possible as I just skimmed this)I see the following facts:

    unprofessional behavior with no remorse. I think this means suspension with him probably having to apply again for reinstatement. And, a complaint with the state bar.

    Ugly situation. He seems self destructive and unstable.

  4. 35

    I mean going down from the PTO. I don’t think Dennis will take any action, but I think the PTO is probably going to end up at least suspending him.

  5. 34

    It sounded familiar to me too, but who was it that was spouting off about that not too long ago?

  6. 33

    “I’d make a pretty strong bet that this guy is going down. ”

    Going down where? You think D would trouble himself to go after the guy for liable or whatever? He’s obviously mentally challenged, and is by his own admission pretty poor.

    Still, his web design skills…

  7. 32

    And then there’s this:

    I had a conversation with a Patent Examiner last year who was telling me the Legend of the 100% Rejection guy. Apparently, there is at least one guy there who is supposedly a rock star at the USPTO because he has rejected ALL PATENT APPLICATIONS to cross his desk. His rejection rate is worn as a badge of honor, and as a result he gets promoted and gets a bunch of raises right after the 4th Quarter.

    Gosh, this sounds familiar.

  8. 31

    I looked at what the guy said about Patentlyo. I’d make a pretty strong bet that this guy is going down.

  9. 30

    I should have noted that Todd is doing a great director at AIPLA, and that is where he is needed now. If Terry does not get chosen, I would be most happy to see Todd back in that position.

    Both are great assets to our profession.

  10. 29

    Look, T Rea is great at her job, and she was “one of us.” She works her butt off, she is responsive, and she is witty without be a smart ass like Rogan. She has a thorough knowledge of patent law, and what she does not know she finds out.

    Todd was a fantastic director, very responsive, but he has been a great director of AIPLA.

    I pray that Terry stays on as the Patent Director. We should all call our congressmen and senators, and encourage them to recommend to Obama that Terry be formally nominated to the position.

  11. 24

    lololololo, oh wow. This guy is seriously unhinged. Excellent work as always Prof. D.

  12. 22

    For serious. I actually thought about hiring that guy to make me a website just now, he actually is pretty good at that. If only his site were more compatible with this old version of IE we’re forced to use.

    In any event, yeah I think he might want to consider web design for a new career.

  13. 20

    lol.

    This is my favorite part:
    ” Well, for starters, this guy apparently went on to the USPTO website around Thursday night/ early Friday morning trolling around for Office Action responses to the USPTO. Funny thing is that I had no idea that this was even possible. And if you are a patent attorney reading this, chances are likely you didn’t know either (come on…be honest).”

    I can honestly say that I would be surprised if a patent attorney didn’t know how to use Public PAIR.

  14. 19

    My favorite part is the sub-page where Mr. Schroeder, Esq., experiments with just how far over the libel line he can go:

    … It has always been my understanding that patent applications less than 18 months old and their office action responses are to remain confidential. … I have found no evidence whatsoever that [accessing these files]is possible. And more importantly, I DON’T EVEN KNOW IF HIS ACTIONS WERE EVEN LEGAL!

    The more I think about it, the more likely it is that Dennis Crouch may have broken a whole bunch of laws. …

    And then of course there are Federal laws as well such as the CFAA (Computer Fraud & Abuse Act) which makes it a felony to hack and steal documents similar to what Dennis [!*#’!*] menace may have done.

  15. 18

    Dennis … Are you going to respond?

    Dennis, I think you should respond by hiring this guy to liven up your website.

  16. 17

    (because the app’s not published yet)

    Right, which is why probably hundreds of us “hackers” managed to pull his reply off PAIR.

    This guy thinks his OA responses in published applications are “confidential”? Yeah, that’s about the typical level of competence of patent attorneys who think everything that goes wrong in their applications is the examiner’s fault.

  17. 15

    can succeed regardless of their background

    Even if this has to be forced by quotas….

    Um, no wait.

  18. 14

    “IANAE, I don’t think you really understand”

    You could have just stopped there.

    IANAE doesn’t think poor search quality is part of piecemeal examination. But can’t or won’t explain why.

  19. 13

    to promote in our society the idea that everyone can succeed regardless of their background.

    The way to do that is by having people succeed regardless of their background. Not by taking their background into account as a mitigating factor.

    If she’s qualified, give her the job because she’s qualified. Don’t diminish her qualifications by making her the first person with a bow in her hair to take the job.

  20. 12

    IANAE, I don't think you really understand why it is important to actively promote and include women and minorities in professional areas where they have been underrepresented.

    When I was a member of the board of the National Inventor's Hall of Fame, we were sensitive to the fact that few honorees were African American. It was my view that we needed to honor African Americans not so much as a matter of equity to the honorees, but to promote in our society the idea that everyone can succeed regardless of their background.

  21. 10

    I think Pres. Obama might take this into consideration, since from everything I’ve seen, Terry Rea is well qualified for the job.

    If she’s so well qualified, why should Obama take her gender into consideration? Just because he gave that other girl the secretary job?

  22. 8

    IANAE, not to make too much of a point about this, but I would think that if Ms. Rea were to become the Director, she would be the very first female to head up to the USPTO in this nation's history. I think Pres. Obama might take this into consideration, since from everything I've seen, Terry Rea is well qualified for the job.

  23. 7

    It’s great their finally giving wealthy Ivy league grads a chance in Washinginton!

    Right, they should do something about the unemployment rate and hire a homeless guy to head up the Department of Commerce. Not someone educated who has been surrounded by successful businesspeople from birth.

  24. 6

    I think this is a great nomination. What’s not to like about a Harvard grad, a Chicago elite, and someone born into the Hyatt empire. It’s great their finally giving wealthy Ivy league grads a chance in Washinginton!

  25. 3

    Maybe Q. Todd will come back to the light side and head up the Office again…?

  26. 1

    Well, in continuing with President Obama’s stellar nominations for the Fed. Cir., I’d suggest picking someone that has no patent experience, no science experience, and has been a government employee their entire life. Maybe even pick a non-lawyer. I’d suggest someone with a background in the arts who is challenged with math, but has good people skills. That way their opinions will match up well with the new batch of Fed. Cir. judges.

Comments are closed.