Patents

We use sophisticated tools, including AI, to generate patent analytics reports on your competitors. This enables us to identify newly published patent applications and monitor the progress of specific applications towards grant, so that we can oppose them if necessary.

Our in-house search capability enables us to adapt and update particular search terms, depending on changes to your needs, allowing greater flexibility in the reports that we generate. We can perform searches for specific entities in specific territories, or undertake wider landscape searches to identify particular trends in a technical sector. We present search results clearly and concisely, in a way that suits you.

We can produce freedom-to-operate reports for you, based on an analysis of the claim scope of identified patents. And where possible, we will advise you on design-arounds that enable third party patents to be circumvented.

Our expertise enables you to unlock the potential of your patents and drive your business forwards. We can support you with the terms of patent licenses, and the registration of the licenses with national intellectual property offices. Our experience includes assigning patent rights between commercial entities as well as universities and not-for-profit organizations.

Licensing of Standard Essential Patents is a particular focus area; we also have extensive experience in associated technical sectors such as telecommunications.

Our European patent applications are robust, and specifically put together to withstand opposition by third parties.  We also have an impressive track record of defending our clients’ patents.  When opposing third‑party patents, we work with our search teams to identify new grounds of attack, while meticulously reviewing prosecution histories and prior art to identify existing weaknesses.  We take a similar approach when preparing requests for UKIPO validity opinions.

We have extensive experience – and a history of successful outcomes – in all forms of dispute resolution, including litigation in the Patents Court and the IPEC, oppositions in the EPO, arbitration, and mediation.  Our patent attorneys, who are also representatives before the Unified Patent Court, will work together with our litigators to get the best result for you in court proceedings, including coordinated strategies for parallel UPC and national actions.

To build a strategic patent portfolio, you need to optimize your budget and focus on acquiring the patents that will bring the greatest benefit to your business. Members of our team have been recognized among the leading patent strategists in the world in rankings such as IAM Strategy 300 and IAM Global Leaders.

We know that the development of your patent strategy is as important as the prosecution itself. We can help you to differentiate high-priority technologies from ideas that are better preserved as trade secrets. We can advise you on the specific commercial advantages of each patent - whether that involves protection from copying, attracting investment, or licensing - and help you develop a portfolio targeted to your specific objectives.

We ensure that your patent strategy is developed in a way that complements the evolution of a technical project and its commercial circumstances. Our expertise includes:

• Assisting with invention-capture processes
• Monitoring of third-party portfolios
• Optimizing scope of protection and territorial coverage for each stage of the technology lifecycle