Lunch & IPWatchdog Masters™ Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Inductees to the IPWatchdog Masters™ Hall of Fame are honored as a tribute to their long histories of service to strengthening and protecting U.S. IP rights. What makes the IPWatchdog HOF unique is the focus on real IP professionals and not those who have generalized fame. We honor those who have really impacted the IP community. People who not only contribute to the field, but who also help set the debate—real thought leaders and industry icons who take the time to participate.

Hon. David Kappos is widely recognized as one of the world’s foremost leaders in the field of intellectual property, including intellectual property management and strategy, the development of global intellectual property norms, laws, and practices, as well as commercialization and enforcement of innovation-based assets. From 2009 to 2013, Mr. Kappos served as Under Secretary of Commerce and Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), and prior to that, he was IBM’s chief intellectual property lawyer. Today, he serves as co-Chair of Cravath’s Intellectual Property Practice and also as co-Chairman of the Board for the Council for Innovation Partnership (C4IP).

Hon. Andrei Iancu is also widely recognized as one of the foremost thought leaders in the field of intellectual property. From 2017 to 2021, Mr. Iancu served as Under Secretary of Commerce and Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Mr. Iancu has decades of experience representing plaintiffs and defendants in IP matters across the technical and scientific spectra, including medical devices, genetic testing, therapeutics, the Internet, telephony, TV broadcasting, video game systems, and computer peripherals. He represents clients in litigation and trials before the district courts, the U.S. International Trade Commission, the USPTO, the Federal Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court. He is currently a partner in Sullivan & Cromwell’s Intellectual Property & Technology practice group, and is co-Chairman of the Board for C4IP.

Joseph Allen served on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee for Senator Birch Bayh (D-IN), securing passage of the landmark Bayh-Dole Act, which fosters R&D partnerships between universities and U.S. industry. It is no stretch to say that throughout his career, he has been the strongest supporter and loudest defender of Bayh-Dole. After leaving the Senate staff, Joe became Executive Director of Intellectual Property Owners, Inc. (IPO), and then the Director of the Office of Technology Commercialization at the Department of Commerce, where he oversaw Executive branch implementation of the Bayh-Dole and Federal Technology Transfer Acts and related presidential policy directives. Today, Joe is the Executive Director of the Bayh-Dole Coalition, a non-profit organization composed of universities, companies, venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and others who are committed to protecting the Bayh-Dole Act.

Lunch is Sponsored by Villegas & Cefo LLP