Q. Todd Dickinson passed away this week at age 67. Todd has been a leader of the intellectual property community for many years and certainly had a major impact on my life and career. Thank you Todd!
He was PTO director when I was a law student back in 2001. At the time, Prof. Doug Lichtman and I were studying data on patenting and I remember being amazed at the rapid jump in the number of patents being issued per year.
The change reflected Dickinson’s approach to patent applicants — identifying inventors and patentees as the “clients” served by the PTO. The change also reflected his leadership within the PTO that was apparent following the antagonism under Jim Rogan. We met in person at the AIPLA midwinter institute in 2005 and enjoyed dozens of meetings, panels, discussions, phone calls and emails. It was always more enjoyable when you were there!
Great tributes from Gene & Renee Quinn and Joff Wild.
“The change reflected Dickinson’s approach to patent applicants — identifying inventors and patentees as the “clients” served by the PTO.”
It was actually his predecessor (Bruce Lehman) who made the mission statement of the PTO “to help our customers get patents.”
I think that Todd was a man that wanted to carry out the law. That is what differentiates him from so many of the political appointments that want to push policy over the law. He would have been great on the CAFC.
+1
“The change reflected Dickinson’s approach to patent applicants — identifying inventors and patentees as the “clients” served by the PTO.”
Thank you for providing this context.
Although the “customer” terminology was meant to convey the idea that the PTO needs to provide service, I never like the terminology, since I think calling me a “customer” implies that I have a choice about where to take my business, which isn’t true when dealing with the PTO. It also implies that the service provider will discipline employees who don’t provide service, which doesn’t happen either.
“I think calling me a “customer” implies that I have a choice about where to take my business, which isn’t true when dealing with the PTO. It also implies that the service provider will discipline employees who don’t provide service, which doesn’t happen either.”
A lot of customers don’t have a choice as to where to take their business. Not sure why you think you being a customer implies discipline as that is a privileged customer position to be sure. Yes it is routine in our day and age, but still a privileged position. Even so they do discipline at certain levels of non-service, you’re just wanting higher levels than “they”, the admin (truthfully ultimately the applicants) want to pay for.
I kinda preferred the later “our stakeholders” motif that suggests villagers with their stakes working up the courage to storm the castle and kill the Frankenstein monster. Todd’s immediate predecessor’s lieutenant told the PTO employees that the customers could always go elsewhere. That’s when the PTO starting referring to itself as the USPTO.
“Todd’s immediate predecessor’s lieutenant told the PTO employees”
Is that recollection from personal experience?
(Minimal snark)
… from just over two months ago: link to patentlyo.com
Those are good points Atari Man. I think it helped, though, to get the message that the government employees weren’t out masters and should try to be cooperative in the process.
But to my mind, when we lost TSM is when the tables really turned. What it did was make it totally up to the examiner whether to allow the patent application without an appeal. And the appeal really is nothing more than a second bite at the apple where the fact finders get to say yes or no based on whatever they feel like basing it on.
All dignity left my job when TSM was abandoned by KSR.
Any attorney with any sense knows the examiners have totally control.
… and yet, we (the Royal We) were visited with tales about how those same *p00r* examiners were the vi ctims of being ‘worn down,’ and thus, applicants NEEDED to be controlled in how often they could obtain RCEs and Continuations…
Todd was a good man and a friend. There aren’t enough like him in the world. And 67 is far, far too young.
The idea of calling users of government services “clients” was pretty common at that time. Even the IRS would call taxpayers “clients”.
Earth’s loss is Heaven’s gain.
. . . and should Heaven have a patent department, Todd’s sure to be there fighting the good fight for innovators everywhere.
+1
Barely knew the fella but he seemed alright when I’d seen him. He was right about the “customer” thing if the whole app isn’t completely invalid under 102/103 though (which the vast majority are not).
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