Deborah Cohn
Commissioner for Trademarks
Deborah Cohn is the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Commissioner for Trademarks. Ms. Cohn oversees all aspects of the USPTO’s Trademarks organization including policy, operations and budget relating to trademark examination, registration and maintenance.
Ms. Cohn joined the USPTO in 1983, and was a trademark examining attorney, managing attorney, and group director before becoming Deputy Commissioner for Trademark Operations in 2006. Ms. Cohn has proven expertise in labor negotiations, implementing trademark legislation and policy, legal examination, and leading the Trademarks organization to an electronic processing environment.
In addition, she has been instrumental in the development and implementation of telework at the USPTO and led the effort to establish the office’s first telework program in 1997. This program has served as a model for the federal government and has won numerous awards. She also served as Acting Chief Administrative Officer for the agency from October 2007 to April 2008 and from May to September 2010.
Ms. Cohn holds degrees from American University and George Mason University School of Law and is a member of the Virginia State Bar.
About the USPTO
Since 1790, the basic role of the United States intellectual property system has remained the same: to promote the progress of science and the useful arts by securing for limited times to inventors the exclusive right to their respective discoveries (Article I, Section 8 of the United States Constitution). Today, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is a federal agency in the Department of Commerce, headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia. Through the issuance of patents, the USPTO encourages technological advancement by providing incentives to invent, invest in, and disclose new technology worldwide. Through the registration of trademarks, the agency assists businesses in protecting their investments, promoting goods and services, and safeguarding consumers against confusion and deception in the marketplace. By disseminating both patent and trademark information, the USPTO promotes an understanding of intellectual property protection and facilitates the development and sharing of new technologies worldwide.
