Squires’ Anniversary Celebration Raises Serious Ethical, Legal Questions

IPWatchdog has learned that U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Director John Squires plans to celebrate one year in office with an event on September 29 at the Motion Picture Association’s (MPA’s) Washington DC headquarters. To our knowledge, this is the first time a Director has publicly celebrated the one-year anniversary of their appointment.

According to the invitation obtained by IPWatchdog, the event will consist of remarks from Director Squires and a screening of the film, Moneyball, starring Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Through a series of conversations with people having knowledge of the event, IPWatchdog has been told that the MPA is allowing Director Squires and/or the USPTO to use their theater at a reduced rate for the screening of the film. We have also been told that Sony Pictures have provided a royalty free license for the screening and that the National Inventors Hall of Fame (NIHF), which gets a substantial portion of its funding from the USPTO, is paying for the event and a reception expected to cost $150 per person.

IPWatchdog has reached out to the USPTO with several questions, including questions relating to whether this is an official USPTO event, who is paying for the event, whether the MPA is donating use of their theater, whether Sony Pictures has granted a royalty free license for the showing, why Moneyball was selected as the film, and more. No response to any of our questions has been received, or clarification offered.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, many reached for comment by IPWatchdog expressed significant concerns about the propriety, and legality, of the event. The USPTO Director is governed by a combination of government-wide ethics rules, the Hatch Act, criminal conflict-of-interest statutes, Department of Commerce procedures, and the USPTO’s statutory responsibilities. The USPTO Director is also statutorily the chief advisor to the President on all intellectual property matters, including copyrights, as well as patents and trademarks. It would seem wildly inappropriate for those with business before the USPTO or those who are affected by U.S. intellectual property laws and policy to donate to what appears to be a personal celebration of the Director.

While it is unclear whether Squires’ one-year celebration is an official USPTO event, the invitation promising remarks from the Director suggests that it is, or at the very least is blurring the line between personal and professional. And if the event is public, it would be required to advance an authorized USPTO function and not be structured to benefit or endorse specific private parties or individuals.

There is also a strict prohibition on accepting gifts. Federal law (5 U.S.C. 7353) specifically prohibits soliciting or accepting anything of value from a person doing business with, or conducting activities regulated by, the individual’s employing entity, or whose interests may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the individual’s official duties.

If the MPA is in fact gifting the space (as IPWatchdog has been told) or the rights to the film are being provided by Sony Pictures for free (as IPWatchdog has been told), that would be a violation of the spirit of the applicable ethics rules and laws, and potentially a direct violation of those rules and laws. It is also unclear who is paying for the event, and whether USPTO employees or officials are engaged in the planning and execution of the event, which could potentially be violations as well.

Bob Stoll, former Commissioner for Patents at the USPTO, told IPWatchdog that whether or not the event is a violation of rules is beside the point. “I would advise Director Squires not to do this, as it at least gives the appearance of impropriety,” Stoll said.