Russell Slifer, formerly director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Rocky Mountain regional office in Denver, has been named the Commerce Department’s deputy undersecretary for intellectual property and USPTO deputy director.
He most recently served as USPTO’s primary liaison with the innovation community in the Rocky Mountain region and helped the agency to develop programs, policies and procedures for the region, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.
Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker said Slifer will be instrumental in USPTO’s efforts to reduce patent application backlog and improve patent and trademark quality.
Slifer will work alongside Michelle Lee, undersecretary for intellectual property and USPTO director, to help businesses protect their investments and prevent fraud in the marketplace.
The two-decade intellectual property law practitioner previously served as chief patent counsel for Micron Technology prior to becoming a regional director for USPTO.
He was also a design engineer for Honeywell.
