[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 164 (Tuesday, September 22, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5780-S5781]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO ERICA SONGER

 Mr. TILLIS. Mr. President, as chairman of the Senate Judiciary 
Committee Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, I want to thank Erica 
Songer for her service in the Senate and in particular for her service 
as the subcommittee's minority chief counsel. The Intellectual Property 
Subcommittee has been the most active subcommittee's in the Senate, in 
no small part due to Erica's work. We have worked in a bipartisan 
fashion to modernize our intellectual property system through forward-
looking legislative reforms. Across numerous hearings on various 
aspects of intellectual property law, as well as several bills, Erica 
has been a vital resource to my team and me.
  During this session, Erica has served the subcommittee in countless 
ways. From promoting women in the intellectual property field to 
reforming our

[[Page S5781]]

Nation's patent eligibility laws, Erica has been an innovator and go-
getter. There were countless times throughout this Congress when the 
subcommittee's work would get tough and it appeared we were at an 
insurmountable impasse. Each time, Erica found a way forward and kept 
us moving towards our shared goals: a stronger intellectual property 
system.
  While I am sad that the Senate and the subcommittee will be losing a 
staffer as valuable as Erica, I am grateful for her public service 
these past 4 years. Erica has shown that she will excel at whatever she 
commits to, whether graduating from Harvard Law School or making 
partner at one of the largest law firms in the world or serving as the 
chief counsel to my good friend Chris Coons--and I am excited for her 
as she steps into a new role and begins a new adventure.

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