United States’ Lisa Jorgenson appointed WIPO Deputy Director General for Patents and Technology

Press Release
20-26

CONTACT: (Media Only)
Paul Fucito or Mandy Kraft
(571) 272-8400 or paul.fucito@uspto.gov or mandy.kraft@uspto.gov

WASHINGTON — The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) congratulates Lisa Jorgenson of the United States on her appointment as World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Deputy Director General (DDG) for the Patents and Technology Sector. She will succeed John Sandage in the role.

Along with Ms. Jorgenson’s appointment, WIPO Director General Daren Tang also appointed Hasan Kleib (Indonesia) as DDG over Regional and National Development, and reappointed Binying Wang (China) as DDG over Brands and Designs and Sylvie Forbin (France) as DDG over Copyright and Creative Industries.

“Congratulations to all WIPO senior management team appointees,” said Andrei Iancu, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO. “We are particularly enthusiastic that Director General Tang accepted the United States’ recommendation of Lisa Jorgenson for Deputy Director General for Patents and Technology. Ms. Jorgenson will play a critical role in helping WIPO members increase the use of intellectual property to incentivize innovation and create economic growth.”

Other new appointees include Assistant Director General (ADG) Kenichiro Natsume (Japan) to oversee Infrastructure and Platforms, ADG Edward Kwakwa (Ghana) to oversee Global Challenges and Partnerships, ADG Marco Aleman (Colombia) to oversee the newly formed IP and Innovation Ecosystems Sector, and ADG Andrew Staines (United Kingdom) to oversee Administration, Finance, and Management.

Ms. Jorgenson is a graduate of St. Mary’s College in Indiana, where she earned a bachelor's degree in biology. She has a master’s degree in industrial management from Purdue University and a juris doctor  from The John Marshall Law School. Over the past 30 years, Ms. Jorgenson has served in a variety of legal positions, including Executive Director of the American Intellectual Property Law Association and Group Vice President, Intellectual Property and Licensing, of STMicroelectronics.

Ms. Jorgenson and the other new members of the WIPO senior management team will begin their new roles at WIPO in January.

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