Dean currently is the Vice President and Associate General Counsel for Data Protection and Information Governance, a role that includes managing 3M’s Global Trade Secret Protection Program (which he has managed for more than a decade). In late 2021, he took on the role of interim Chief Privacy Officer for 3M, and within about six weeks recommended the strategy and structure adopted by the Chief Legal Officer for 3M’s legal support for Data Protection, Digital Transformation, Privacy, and Cybersecurity, a group in which he’s an inaugural member. He also is Co-Chair of the IPO International Patent Law & Trade Committee, and Chair of the IPO Anti-Suit Injunction subcommittee. For seven years, he managed 3M’s International IP Operations, leading a team of 50-60 IP professionals (attorneys, agents, liaisons, analysts, assistants) across up to 15 countries. Earlier, he was Managing IP Counsel for 3M’s Health Care Business, and Electro & Communications Business, after serving as IP Counsel to several different 3M businesses. Dean has experienced most aspects of U.S. and international patent drafting, prosecution, agreements, oppositions, and enforcement, along with global trademark management and anticounterfeiting work. He holds a J.D. from William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota, a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, and is CIPP/US certified.