High-tech attorney Jim Pooley, one of several top contenders for the job of Patent and Trademark Office director, was approved by World Intellectual Property Organization leaders on Monday as deputy director general for patents. Pooley has been a partner in the litigation department of the Palo Alto office of Morrison & Forrester and has practiced in Silicon Valley since 1973. He is immediate past president of the American Intellectual Property Law Association and president of the National Inventors Hall of Fame. Other new deputy directors general are: Geoffrey Onyeama (Nigeria), cooperation for development (including development agenda and WIPO Academy); Wang Binying (China), trademarks, industrial designs and geographical indications; and Johannes Wichard (Germany) global issues (including enforcement, arbitration/mediation, communications, and the committee on genetic resources, traditional knowledge and folklore). For more, click here. (Hat tip, William New)