Mr. Hilsmier is a Registered U.S. Patent Agent whose career in intellectual property law spans nearly 20 years. Mr. Hilsmier began his practice in the 1990s at another well-known Washington DC IP Boutique where he assisted in preparing patent applications. Mr. Hilsmier then worked as a Patent Examiner in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. While at the U.S. PTO, Mr. Hilsmier primarily examined applications in the dentistry art, class 433. Inventions in the dentistry art span a wide range of technologies including mechanical, chemical, electrical, and materials science. Mr. Hilsmier joined Global IP Counselors in 1999. With Global IP counselors, Mr. Hilsmier has prepared and/or prosecuted hundreds if not thousands of U.S. patent applications in a wide variety of technologies. Some of Mr. Hilsmier’s career highlights include conducting hundreds of Examiner Interviews, presenting oral arguments in successful appeals to the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (formerly the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences), and personally drafting numerous new (scratch) patent applications for U.S. and Japanese clients. Mr. Hilsmier travels frequently to Japan to advise Japanese clients on U.S practice, procedures and law changes.