
Farheena Y. Rasheed has been appointed deputy general counsel for intellectual property law and solicitor by the USPTO.
The Office of the Solicitor serves as legal counsel to the USPTO on intellectual property law and works in collaboration with the Department of Commerce on interagency intellectual property law matters, as well as with the Department of Justice in advocacy before all U.S. courts.
Rasheed will serve as the chief litigator for the USPTO and carry out the strategic direction of Kathi Vidal, the under secretary of commerce for intellectual property and director of the USPTO, through advocacy and defense of USPTO actions in the U.S. judicial system. “I look forward to thinking more broadly about our litigation strategies across judicial forums to help shape the intellectual property landscape, supporting the director’s vision of strong, reliable IP rights and advancing the agency’s mission to foster American ingenuity, entrepreneurship, and innovation through science, technology, and the useful arts,” Rasheed said.
She joined the USPTO Solicitors Office in 2010 as an associate solicitor for patent litigation, most recently serving as acting solicitor. In that time, Rasheed has led the USPTO’s work in appeals of Patent Trial and Appeal Board proceedings in federal court, defended the USPTO in statutory, regulatory, and constitutional challenges, and played a role in the development of USPTO rules, guidelines, and policies.