Practice areas - IP & patent litigation - More information
PatentsThe majority of Bristows' IP lawyers have scientific and technology backgrounds, including physics, chemistry, biotechnology, electronics, engineering and material sciences. Whatever the technology on which a client has built its business, Bristows will have someone with relevant background and experience.
Recent patent disputes on which we have advised have focused on mobile phones, aviation technology, biotech drugs and conventional pharmaceuticals, computers, oil field equipment, medical equipment, GPS, biometric IDs, power generation and automotive technology. We frequently advise on the interplay of patent rights with regulatory and competition issues and, specifically in the Life Sciences sector, we are experienced in dealing with Supplementary Protection Certificates and the Life Cycle Management of pharmaceutical products.
We are well-equipped to advise on the international aspects of patent disputes. As well as representing clients before the specialist and higher courts in the UK, we regularly appear before the European Patent Office and coordinate international cases, working with and often supervising local lawyers in jurisdictions worldwide. There are few major IP firms around the world with whom we have not worked.
Brands and Designs
Acting for leading UK and global brands, Bristows consistently advises clients in relation to anti-counterfeiting campaigns and trade mark, design, passing-off and domain name disputes. Representing companies across all major sectors, our team has particular expertise in assisting consumer products, pharmaceutical, media, information technology and travel and leisure businesses.
We have represented clients in all forums, ranging from opposition proceedings before the UK Intellectual Property Office and OHIM through to litigation in the higher courts up to and including the Court of Justice in Luxembourg. A deep working understanding of the UK and European appellate courts is complemented by a recognition of the importance of exploring the possibility of alternative dispute resolution. In addition to handling mediation and arbitration proceedings (with several Partners acting as qualified Mediators), our specialist lawyers routinely advise clients in relation to complaints made to the Advertising Standards Authority and other industry-specific regulatory bodies.
Copyright
Bristows' media team has expertise in both contentious and commercial copyright matters. We work closely with clients across a range of creative industry sectors such as music, television, film, publishing, new media and consumer products. Clients we help to protect and enhance the value of their copyright assets include leading independent music publishing houses, publishers of high-end fashion magazines, one of the UK's largest cinema chains, a newspaper group, a global Internet search engine, broadcasters, popular TV program producers and the largest global music industry association.
Examples of Bristows' recent contentious copyright law experience include:
- Representing two music publishers in copyright infringement claims in the High Court and several other jurisdictions regarding the print and publishing rights of thousands of compositions owned by the major record labels;
- Advising a magazine publisher regarding copyright infringement issues concerning editorial and image content;
- Representing a cinema chain in relation to a sound recording "synchronisation" copyright infringement claim affecting over 800 movie screens by the licensees of a well known musical soundtrack;
- Advising a leading Internet search engine in relation to High Court proceedings concerning the source code copyright of peer-to-peer telephony technology;
- Representing a leading global business to business software owner and supplier in High Court source code copyright infringement proceedings.
Bristows has extensive experience in protecting confidential information and defending alleged misuses of confidential information. Disputes often arise from joint development work between businesses, or when employees move from one business to another. We are experienced in handling litigation before the Courts, including interim injunction procedures, and arbitrations.
Our experiences include acting in the UK's largest arbitration proceedings where the issue was breach of confidence, and defending one of the world's largest consumer goods companies from a claim that they had misused confidential know-how from a potential collaborator. Given that issues relating to confidential information / trade secrets can relate to different aspects of law including IP, commercial and employment law, Bristows is superbly placed to provide the necessary expertise to clients.