Office of the Solicitor

Local
571-272-9035
Fax
571-273-0373
Thomas Krause portrait
Deputy General Counsel for Intellectual Property Law and Solicitor

The Office of the Solicitor serves as legal counsel to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on intellectual property law matters. The Solicitor's Office also works in collaboration with the Department of Commerce on interagency intellectual property law matters. The Acting Deputy General Counsel for Intellectual Property Law and Solicitor is Farheena Rasheed. 

Among other responsibilities, the Office of the Solicitor

  • Defends decisions by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) and the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) before the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the federal district courts
  • Represents the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO in district court actions that are filed against the USPTO pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act (APA)
  • Provides legal advice on intellectual property law policy and regulation
  • Prosecutes attorneys and agents who practice before the agency for alleged ethical violations
  • Defends USPTO employees at deposition
  • Amicus Briefs
  • Supreme Court Decisions
  • Federal Circuit Appeals

Office of the Solicitor staff

Deputy General Counsel for Intellectual Property Law and Solicitor:

Krause, Thomas

Deputy Solicitor: Rasheed, Farheena Y.
Acting Chief of Staff: Queler, Maureen
Senior Counsel for Patent Law and Litigation: Ayers, Peter
Senior Counsel for Patent Policy and Litigation: Nelson, Amy
Senior Counsel for Trademark Policy and Litigation:  Hieber, Christina J.
Special Counsel for Intellectual Property Litigation: LaMarca, William
Senior Counsel for Enrollment and Discipline Litigation: Johnson, Jr. Sydney O.

Administrative Management Specialist:

Nicholson, Tasha

Attorneys:

Amin, Omar
Caprihan, Kakoli
Craven, Sarah
Dang, Mai-Trang
DeAtley, Melinda
DeBoer, Hendrik
Ferman, John
Forman, Michael
Hickman, Ben
Kazhdan, Daniel
Kelly, Mary L.
Lateef, Monica
McManus, Robert J.
Munasifi, Lena
Queler, Maureen
Racilla, Brian T.
Richards, Kevin
Sawert, Peter
Schoenfeld, Meredith
Silfen, Molly
Tyler, Michael
Walker, Mary Beth

Supervisory Paralegal:

Walter, Shane

Paralegals:

Domenico, Michael
Fletcher, Macia
Kilby, Candice
Newsam, Sean
Nguyen, Phoebe
Peterson, Laura
Rushenas, Orchideh
Russ, Natasha

Law Librarian:

Kennedy, Laura

Legal Assistants:

Gibson, Darryl
Miller, Denise