On November 15, 2019, Timofey Milovanov, the Minister of Development of Economy, Trade and Agriculture of Ukraine announced the dismissal of the head of the state enterprise Ukrainian Institute of Intellectual Property (Ukrpatent) Andriy Kudin, the head of the Department of Intellectual Property of the Ministry Valeriy Zhaldak and the head of the National Intellectual Property Office Bogdan Morklyanyk.
Director of expertise Natalia Petrova was temporarily appointed as the head of Ukrpatent.
This decision was made against the background of the introduction in parliament of a draft law on the creation of a single office in Ukraine on intellectual property matters and discussions in the professional community on how to create a new agency in the structure of the Ministry of Economy.
Minister Timofey Milovanov held meetings with the Ukrpatent team, during which he received information about numerous complaints from industry experts about Ukrpatent’s performance, delays in considering applications, complaints from the staff about low salaries and staff outflows, about actions of the director of the Department of Intellectual Property of the Ministry of Economics Valery Zhaldak, who signed the estimates of Ukrpatent.
An opinion was also expressed on the economic inexpediency of the existence of a duplicating body – the National Intellectual Property Office.
Andrey Kudin became the head of Ukrpatent in 2015.
Valery Zhaldak headed the Department of Intellectual Property of the Ministry of Economy in 2017.
Bogdan Morklyanyk headed the newly created National Intellectual Property Office in 2018.