David Kappos

David "Dave" J. Kappos (born March 3, 1961, Palos Verdes, California) is an attorney who served as the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) from 2009 to 2013.Prior to being confirmed to this post by the U.S. Senate on August 7, 2009, Kappos was the vice president and assistant general counsel, intellectual property law, for IBM Corporation.Kappos announced his intent to step down from the position in late January 2013.His final day in office was Friday, February 1, 2013. He was succeeded by Teresa Stanek Rea as Acting Under Secretary and Acting Director.

Kappos received his bachelor's degree in electrical and computer engineering from the University of California-Davis in 1983, and his law degree from the University of California Berkeley in 1990.He joined IBM in 1983 as a development engineer and has served in a variety of roles before taking his last position at IBM, including intellectual property law attorney in IBM's Storage Division and Litigation group, IP Law Counsel in IBM's Software Group, assistant general counsel for IBM Asia/Pacific, IBM Corporate Counsel and assistant general counsel.Kappos served on the Board of Directors of the American Intellectual Property Law Association, the Intellectual Property Owners Association, and the International Intellectual Property Society. Kappos is a Board Member of the Executive Advisory Committee of the International IP Commercialization Council (IIPCC.org), a global NPO NGO.

After leaving the PTO, Kappos joined the law firm of Cravath, Swaine & Moore, where he advises clients on intellectual property matters relating to corporate mergers and acquisitions and litigation.

• Rick Merritt, IBM exec picked to head patent office, EE Times, June 18, 2009.
• Dennis Crouch, David Kappos: Next USPTO Director, Patently-O blog, June 18, 2009.
• Mr. David Kappos, Biography (UNC Symposium for Intellectual Property, Creativity, and the Innovation Process)
• William New, USPTO Nominee Kappos Appears To Clear First Senate Hurdle, Intellectual Property Watch, 29 July 2009
• United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Hearing of David J. Kappos, July 29, 2009.
• Kappos, David J.; John R. Thomas; Randall J. Bluestone (2008). "A Technological Contribution Requirement for Patentable Subject Matter: Supreme Court Precedent and Policy". Northwestern Journal of Technology and Intellectual Property. 6 (2): 152–170.
• Timothy B. Lee, US patent chief to software patent critics: "Give it a rest already", Ars Technica, Journalism, November 20, 2012