This is a list of notable people associated with patent law and patent-related institutions. For a list of notable inventors, see list of inventors. For a list of notable patent attorneys, see list of patent attorneys and agents. For a list of notable patent examiners and clerks, see patent examiner. Although this list is not intended to include inventors, patent attorneys and patent clerks, those may also be inserted in this list if they made a durable impact on patent law, or patent-related institutions.
Arrow, Kenneth (a joint winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics with John Hicks), known for Arrow information paradox, a problem that companies face when managing intellectual property across their boundaries
Banner, Don (1924–2006), former Commissioner of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
Battistelli, Benoît (born 1950), current president of the European Patent Office
van Benthem, Johannes Bob (1921–2006), first president of the European Patent Office
Bodenhausen, Georg, former director of BIRPI and first Director General of World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
Bogsch, Árpád (1919–2004), former Director General of WIPO
Bolkestein, Frits (born 1933), former European Commissioner for the Internal Market
Braendli, Paul, second president of the European Patent Office
Brimelow, Alison (born 1949), ex-Comptroller General of the United Kingdom Patent Office, fifth president of the European Patent Office
Curchod, François, former Deputy Director General of WIPO
Dickinson, Q. Todd, former head of the USPTO
Doll, John J., former acting United States Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and director of the USPTO
Dudas, Jon W., former head of the USPTO and U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property
Gori, Paolo, former Vice-President, head of the DG 3 (Appeals) of the European Patent Office
Grossenbacher, Roland, former chairman of the Administrative Council of the European Patent Organisation
Guellec, Dominique, French economist and former chief economist at the European Patent Office
Gurry, Francis, current Director General of the WIPO
George Washington, the signer of the first patent
Haberman, Mandy, famous British inventor of the Any-way up Cup
Haertel, Kurt (1910–2000), considered one of the founding fathers of the European patent system
Idris, Kamil, former WIPO Director General
Jefferson, Thomas, first United States Commissioner of Patents
Kappos, David, former Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office
Kober, Ingo (born 1942), third president of the European Patent Office
Kunin, Stephen, former Deputy Patent Commissioner for Patent Examination Policy, USPTO
Kurian P. H., (IAS) Current Controller General of Patents, Designs & Trademarks, India
Laddie, Sir Hugh (1946–2008), former UK judge
Lehman, Bruce (born 1945), former U.S. Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks
Lemelson, Jerome H. (1923–1997), controversial American inventor and patent holder, associated with submarine patents
Marchant, Ron, former Comptroller General of Patents, Trade Marks and Designs (UK), also Trade Mark Registrar, Designs Registrar and Chief Executive of the United Kingdom Patent Office, now known as the UK Intellectual Property Office.
Markey, Howard T. (1920–2006), first chief justice of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
Messerli, Peter, former Vice-President, head of the DG 3 (Appeals) of the European Patent Office (EPO)
Michel, Jacques, former Vice-President DG1 (Operations) of the European Patent Office (EPO) (retired in 2002)
Nakajima, Makoto, former head of Japan Patent Office
Nies, Helen, former chief judge of United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (deceased).
Ogawa, Hiroshi, former head of Japan Patent Office
Ono, Shinjiro, former Deputy commissioner of the Japan Patent Office
Phelps, Marshall, corporate vice president and deputy general counsel for intellectual property, Microsoft
Phillips, Jeremy, academic and author in intellectual property law
Pompidou, Alain (born 1942), French scientist and politician, fourth president of the European Patent Office
van Pottelsberghe, Bruno (born 1968), chief economist at the European Patent Organisation
Prescott, Peter QC, Patent Barrister and occasional Deputy High Court of England and Wales judge in matters relating to patents (United Kingdom)
Quigg, Donald J., former Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Commissioner of the USPTO (1985–1990); former Deputy Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks (1981–1985); former General Patent Counsel of Phillips Petroleum (1971–1981); associate patent counsel and chief of the legal branch (1954–1971); senior patent attorney, section chief (1950–1954); and staff patent attorney (1945–1950).
Giles Sutherland Rich, (1904–1999) United States Judge, Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, and United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Rader, Randall (born 1949), federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Rogan, James E. (born 1957), former Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property, U.S., and former director of USPTO
Ravenhill, Lorna. (born 1971), Project Manager at Royal Holloway University, Wife, Mother, and former student at Queen Mary, University of London
Rolla, Joe, current Deputy Patent Commissioner for Patent Examination Policy, USPTO
Savignon, François, considered one of the founding fathers of the European patent system
Singer, Romuald, author of Singer & Stauder, The European Patent Convention - A Commentary
Stallman, Richard, Campaigner on public interest and Free and Open Source Software.
Stauder, Dieter, former Director of the International Section of the Centre for International Industrial Property Studies (CEIPI), author of Singer & Stauder, The European Patent Convention - A Commentary
Stern, Richard H., academic, author on intellectual property, and former chief of Patent Section in U.S. Department of Justice
Straus, Joseph, director of the Max Planck Institute for Intellectual Property, Competition and Tax Law and leading patent scholar
Sugimura, Nobuchika, first chairman of the Japan Patent Attorneys Association
Suzuki, Takashi (born 1949), Commissioner of the Japan Patent Office since July 2008
Takahashi, Korekiyo (1854–1936), first commissioner of the Japan Patent Office, then Prime Minister of Japan
List of people associated with patent law Wikipedia (Text) CC BY-SA