104 examiners and judges recognized to drive continuous improvement in patent quality
The Korean Intellectual Property Office held its first-half 2026 awards ceremony for outstanding patent examination and trial quality, recognizing examiners and judges to boost professional pride and drive sustained improvements in patent quality.
At a ceremony Wednesday at the Government Daejeon Complex, the office honored 104 examiners and judges, along with 13 departments recognized for excellence in examination and trial group performance.
For the first half of the year, 96 examiners were named outstanding examiners, led by Seo Seong-hyeon of the Mechanical, Electronics and Trademark Examination Team, while eight judges were named outstanding trial judges, led by Kim Tak-yeong of Trial Division 34.
The office said it actively collects feedback not only from examiners in the field but also from patent customers to strengthen the objectivity and effectiveness of its examination quality management.
It regularly holds meetings with patent attorneys, applicants and other intellectual property service users to gather assessments of examination quality and suggestions for improvement, incorporating that feedback into quality diagnostics and reforms to the examination system.
The office is also advancing a data-driven quality analysis framework and piloting AI agent technology in examination quality diagnostics as part of a broader push to build a more objective and efficient quality management system.
"I am grateful for the dedication of the examiners, judges and outstanding departments being honored today," said Kim Yong-seon, commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office. "Their expertise, sense of responsibility and tireless effort are the driving force behind examination and trial services that the public can trust. We will continue to reflect the voices from the field in our policy and pursue data-driven quality innovation to deliver fair and trusted examination and trial services."
kwonhl@heraldcorp.com
