[Asia Exclusive] Lee Insil, Commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office... Over 20 Years as a Patent Attorney and Hardened in the Field of Patents

Patent Office Commissioner Lee In-sil is being interviewed by Asia Economy in his office at the Daejeon Government Complex. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] "I find it familiar because it has many points of contact with the work I usually do, and thanks to that, these days I feel a renewed joy in the process of working rather than difficulties."

Lee In-sil, who took office on May 31, holds the title of the first female civilian Commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO).

Commissioner Lee graduated from the Department of French Language and Literature at Pusan National University in 1983. Regardless of her major, she passed the patent attorney exam in 1985 and worked as a patent attorney at Kim & Chang law firm for 10 years starting that year.

After leaving the law firm, she sequentially completed studies at the Robert Schuman University Graduate School of Law (CEIPI), earned a Master of Laws at Ewha Womans University Graduate School, an LL.M. at the University of Washington, and pursued a Ph.D. in law at Korea University. Based on this, she served as the representative patent attorney of Cheongun International Patent Law Firm from 1996 until her appointment as Commissioner. She has honed her expertise in patent work on the ground.

During her time as a patent attorney, she also stood out by holding significant positions such as President of the Korean Women Patent Attorneys Association, expert and civilian member of the National Intellectual Property Committee, and Vice President of the Korean Patent Attorneys Association.

Commissioner Lee said, "I was first pleased to be able to closely observe the patent examination work that I had only seen from the outside. Especially, I feel proud of the excellent talents and systems working at KIPO and am proud to reaffirm the strength of the office."

However, she added, "I felt a pang in my heart when I realized the poor working conditions of the examiners."

She explained, "It was regrettable that examiners have a set number of cases to process within a certain period and always have to work on examinations as if being chased due to the large volume."

The current situation where the number of cases does not decrease but the examination period shortens poses the challenge of maintaining examination quality. She said, "I am determined to solve the fatigue problem of examiners by any means. We will seek solutions from within."

Commissioner Lee is also strengthening communication with employees. She conducted surveys targeting staff to listen to internal voices regarding the examination work environment and personnel matters, and based on this, she has begun setting basic directions for policy priorities and process improvements.

The KIPO Public Officials Labor Union responded to Commissioner Lee’s efforts to enhance internal communication by presenting a plaque of appreciation at a recent meeting with the Commissioner.

Commissioner Lee said, "Going forward, I will actively communicate with the patent family and strive to reduce the burden on examination personnel and strengthen their capabilities by introducing focused working hours and minimizing non-examination tasks."

▲ Born 1961, Busan, Gyeongnam ▲ Bachelor’s in French Language and Literature, Pusan National University ▲ Completed Robert Schuman University Graduate School of Law (CEIPI) ▲ Master of Laws, Ewha Womans University Graduate School ▲ Master of Laws (LL.M.), University of Washington ▲ Ph.D. in Law, Korea University ▲ Kim & Chang Law Firm ▲ Representative Patent Attorney, Cheongun International Patent Law Firm ▲ President, Korean Women Patent Attorneys Association ▲ Expert and Civilian Member, National Intellectual Property Committee ▲ President, Business and Professional Women (BPW) Korea Federation and Chair of East Asia Region ▲ Vice President, Korean Patent Attorneys Association ▲ President, Korean Association of the International Federation of Intellectual Property Attorneys ▲ 28th Commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office (May 2022~)

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.