Erik Bertin Appointed Acting Associate Register of Copyrights and Director of Registration Policy and Practice

The United States Copyright Office today announced that Erik Bertin will serve as Acting Associate Register of Copyrights and Director of Registration Policy and Practice, effective August 31, 2025. Bertin assumes this role upon the departure of Associate Register and Director of Registration Policy and Practice Robert Kasunic.

Robert Kasunic leaves the Copyright Office after twenty-five years of dedicated service. Prior to his 2013 appointment to lead the Office of Registration Policy and Practice, he served in the Office of General Counsel—first as a Senior Attorney beginning in 2000, then as Principal Legal Advisor in 2003, and as Deputy General Counsel in 2010. During his tenure as Associate Register of Copyrights, he oversaw the registration of over five million claims to copyright covering tens of millions of works and achieved historically low processing times. His broad scope of knowledge and focus on promoting creativity have set the vision for a modernized copyright registration system now in development.

The Office recognizes Kasunic’s expertise, which has been invaluable. He has been instrumental across several periods of significant transformation and innovation for the Copyright Office.

As Deputy Director of Registration Policy and Practice, Erik Bertin has greatly contributed to the Office’s achievements for well over a decade, and Office staff look forward to working with him in his new role.

Bertin joined the Copyright Office in 2011 as an Attorney-Advisor in the Office of Policy and International Affairs, and he served as Assistant General Counsel from 2013 to 2015. Since 2015, he has served as Deputy Director of Registration Policy and Practice. He shares responsibility for overseeing the Office of Registration Policy and Practice and manages a diverse portfolio of legal, policy, and governance matters.

Before joining the Copyright Office, Bertin worked in private practice in Washington, DC, where he represented a wide range of clients in intellectual property matters. Bertin earned a JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where he was an articles editor for the law review, and a BA in English from The Johns Hopkins University.