High-Ranking PTAB Judge Heads Back To Covington

Scott Weidenfeller spoke with Law360 about his return to Covington after 12 years at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Scott mentioned he appreciates the work caliber of the firm's attorneys and also the firm's collaborative culture and is looking forward to leveraging his experience at the USPTO to help the firm's clients.

Scott recounted his experience to Law360 leading up to the present. Prior to graduating from Georgetown University where he obtained his law degree, he was a mechanical engineer. He then clerked at the Federal Circuit and then spent 4 years at Covington as an associate before occupying several positions within the USPTO. When asked about his decision to return to Covington, he said, "I thought it was an interesting opportunity to return to a firm that I knew and had a really high opinion of.”

He described his experience over the years as "a good opportunity to work in the solicitor's office and get stand-up experience in the Federal Circuit, and an opportunity to learn about how the USPTO works and get a view on the inner workings of the agency.”

Scott described his law practice as "a really interesting type of work.” He added, “you learn about new technologies all the time.”

Michael Plimack also commented on Scott rejoining the firm and his anticipated contributions to the patent practice group. He said, "The addition of Scott will add a second former PTAB judge to the firm's deep bench of patent litigators. Having presided over inter partes reviews, in addition to his years of experience in PTAB leadership and in representing the USPTO in litigation, he will provide unique insights to help our clients develop their strategies in IPRs and other post-issuance proceedings before the board, appeals to the Federal Circuit and other patent litigation."