Sarah Harris

As USPTO’s General Counsel, Sarah Harris is the principal legal advisor to the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO. She supervises the provision of legal advice and court representation on intellectual property and administrative matters for the Agency. Ms. Harris is responsible for providing legal advice on patent, trademark, and copyright matters as well as administrative issues such as government contracts, personnel, and budgetary matters. As necessary, she coordinates with the Department of Justice, Department of Commerce, and other agencies in developing the U.S. position on major intellectual property cases before the Supreme Court and Courts of Appeals.
Prior to joining the USPTO, Ms. Harris served as Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, Intellectual Property at AOL, Inc. and Associate General Counsel, Intellectual Property at Cooper Industries, Ltd where she established and managed the implementation of global corporate strategies for capturing, protecting, and exploiting intellectual property to complement corporate initiatives. Prior to AOL, she held IP positions with Hewlett-Packard, and Compaq, and served as Of Counsel at Haynes and Boone, LLP.

Ms. Harris was the President of the Houston Intellectual Property Law Association. She received her B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Texas A&M University and her J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center.