Dudas, already the acting head of the USPTO, was one of 20 federal appointees designated for a recess appointment, the White House said in a statement on Friday. By making the appointment during the congressional recess, Bush avoids the need for a Senate confirmation.
The 35-year-old Dudas took over the reins at the USPTO in January following his predecessor’s decision to resign to pursue opportunities in the private sector and write his autobiography.
In a statement issued at Dudas’ formal nomination in March, Commerce Secretary Donald L. Evans said Dudas had done an outstanding job as Deputy Director.
“Jon's work at the USPTO and his experience in intellectual property in the private sector and on the Hill make him the ideal candidate to carry forward the Administration's commitment to economic growth by producing the most timely and reliable intellectual property protection for American innovators ,” Evans said.
As a private practitioner in the early 1990s, Dudas worked extensively on trademarks and copyrights.
During his six years as Counsel to the Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property, and Staff Director and Deputy General Counsel for the House Committee on the Judiciary, he guided enactment of major patent, trademark and copyright policy. Among the policy initiatives he worked on were the 1996 Trademark Anti-Counterfeiting Consumer Protection Act, the 1999 American Inventors Protection Act and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
During his two-years as USPTO’s Deputy Under Secretary and Director, Dudas was directly involved in guiding the operations of the $1.2 billion, 7,000-employee agency and in the creation of the USPTO’s 21st Century Strategic Plan.
Former USPTO Director James E. Rogan, who was sworn in as the 55th head of the patent office on Dec. 7, 2001, announced his resignation in December of last year.
Meanwhile, Bush announced he would appoint Deborah Majoras of Virginia to replace Timothy J. Muris as chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, who is stepping down after three years. Majoras, a former Justice Department deputy assistant attorney general, was one of the lead attorneys in the government's antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft Corp.
Majoras' nomination had been blocked in the Senate by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who said there was no evidence she would change FTC policies that benefit oil companies and hurt consumers.