About the Authors

• Author: David R. Gerk - John M. Fleming
• Pages: xv-xvi

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Contents

About the Authors

David R. Gerk is an attorney in the Office of Policy and External Af-

fairs (OPEA) at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) where

he advises the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property

and Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on domestic and

international IP issues as well as on United States treaty obligations and

helps to formulate U.S. domestic and international policy regarding pro-

tection and enforcement of intellectual property rights. In his role at the

OPEA, he also helps promote development of intellectual property sys-

tems nationally and internationally, consults with foreign governments

and other U.S. Government agencies on substantive intellectual property

rights laws and legal and judicial regimes, and provides and participates

in technical assistance and capacity-building programs and conferences

with foreign governments seeking to develop or improve their intellec-

tual property laws and regulations.

Prior to joining the USPTO, David was a shareholder in Banner &

Witcoff’s Washington, D.C., office where he practiced intellectual prop-

erty law with a focus on counseling, prosecution, and litigation of utility

and design patent matters, principally in the mechanical, electrical, and

computer arts. He also prosecuted and counseled in copyright, trademark,

and trade dress matters. He is experienced representing client interests,

including large corporations, small and medium-size businesses, and indi-

vidual inventors in technologies ranging from manufacturing processes

and consumer products to Internet and cellular communications to bio-

medical devices and nutraceuticals and various other technologies.

David is a co-founder of the Patent Law Option at The George Wash-

ington University School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS),

where he serves as a part-time professor. He regularly publishes and

lectures on a wide array of intellectual property issues. David also served

in committee leadership for both the ABA and AIPLA, regularly meet-

ing with attorneys, organizations, business leaders, and the USPTO and

international IP officials regarding intellectual property legislation, legal

decisions, and U.S. and foreign IP practice and procedures. He received

an Honors B.S. in mechanical engineering from Marquette University

and a J.D. from The George Washington University Law School.

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