New WIPO Sector Leaders Include United States’ Lisa Jorgenson

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced on Friday that Lisa Jorgenson, former Executive Director of the American Intellectual Property Law Association and Group Vice President, Intellectual Property and Licensing, of STMicroelectronics, was appointed World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Deputy Director General (DDG) for the Patents and Technology Sector. Jorgenson succeeded John Sandage and was appointed alongside Hasan Kleib of Indonesia, who will serve as DDG over Regional and National Development; Binying Wang of China as DDG over Brands and Designs; and Sylvie Forbin of France as DDG over Copyright and Creative Industries. Four Assistant Directors General were also appointed.

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

In a WIPO press release, Tang said that the eight Sector Leads were chosen to “set the tone at the top.” “The Sector leads play an important role as senior leaders of the Organization. Collectively, and together with me, we set the tone at the top. As a team, we are responsible not just for strategy and leadership but also translating strategy into concrete plans, initiatives, and actions.”

Tang also touted the diversity of his appointees. Three of the four Deputy Directors General are women, comprising 37.5% of its most senior leaders. “This is the most gender diverse senior leadership in WIPO’s history,” Tang said. “It will be a source of strength for WIPO and demonstrate[s] our seriousness about gender diversity.”

AIPLA weighed in as well, congratulating Jorgenson and expressing confidence in her appointment. “Having served as Executive Director of AIPLA and in the corporate IP sector, Lisa brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the leadership team at WIPO,” said Joe Re, AIPLA President.

Jorgenson and the other new leaders will begin in their roles in January 2021.

Full list of appointed WIPO Deputy Directors General and Assistant Directors General:

• Lisa Jorgenson (United States of America): Deputy Director General, Patents and Technology Sector.
• Wang Binying (China): Deputy Director General, Brands and Designs Sector
• Sylvie Forbin (France): Deputy Director General, Copyright and Creative Industries Sector.
• Hasan Kleib (Indonesia) Deputy Director General, Regional and National Development Sector.
• Kenichiro Natsume (Japan): Assistant Director General, Infrastructure and Platforms Sector.
• Edward Kwakwa (Ghana): Assistant Director General, Global Challenges and Partnerships Sector.
• Marco Aleman (Colombia): Assistant Director General, IP and Innovation Ecosystems Sector.
• Andrew Staines (United Kingdom): Assistant Director General, Administration, Finance and Management Sector.