Drew Hirshfeld to Step Down from Patent Office June 21 (1)

Drew Hirshfeld, the acting deputy director of the US Patent and Trademark Office who performed the role of interim director for more than a year, announced that his final day in the office will be June 21.

Hirshfeld led the PTO’s response to the Supreme Court’s June 2021 Arthrex decision, which held that PTO administrative patent judges’ decisions must be subject to the agency director’s review. Hirshfeld denied director review in that case, and his authority to do so—despite having never been confirmed by the Senate—was affirmed in a recent Federal Circuit ruling.

Hirshfeld also oversaw the implementation of the ...