By Erin Smith

Feb 6 (Reuters) - David Kappos, the former Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, has joined Cravath Swaine & Moore as a partner in the firm's intellectual property practice.

Kappos, who was appointed by President Barack Obama to head the patent office in 2009, resigned from the USPTO effective earlier this month.

During his tenure, Kappos oversaw the implementation of the 2011 America Invents Act, which overhauled the nation's patent system and was widely viewed by intellectual property attorneys as modernizing the office and improving its efficiency.

Prior to joining the patent office, Kappos spent 25 years at IBM Corp in a variety of roles, including assistant general counsel for intellectual property.

IBM, which is the world's largest intellectual property holder, is a longtime client of Cravath, and Kappos worked with the firm during his tenure at the technology giant.

"Dave's experience will be highly relevant to a wide range of Cravath's clients, including in the biotechnology, consumer, general industries, media, pharmaceutical, technology and telecommunications sectors," Cravath presiding partner Allen Parker said in a statement.

Kappos will largely focus on corporate work, including intellectual property issues related to mergers and acquistions, but he will also be a resource for the firm's litigators, Parker told Reuters.

Cravath's clients include Qualcomm Inc and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co, and it has long-represented major record companies fighting copyright infringement related to file sharing.

Kappos is the second former Obama official to join Cravath. In 2011, the firm hired Christine Varney, the former top antitrust official in the U.S. Justice Department.

According to the American Lawyer, Cravath, with 475 lawyers, reported profits per partner of $3,100,000 in 2011.

Teresa Stanek Rea is serving as acting director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. She served as the deputy director under Kappos. 

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