About Me

I have over 45 years' experience in the field of intellectual property, especially global patent litigation and have acted in many of the leading English patent infringement cases.

I have been advising on intellectual property since admission as a Solicitor in 1977. I was a partner in Bird & Bird's Intellectual Property Group from 1981 until 2013 and relocated to the US in 2014, joining a law firm in New York from 2014 to 2022. I specialise in global patent litigation and have acted in some of the most important patent infringement cases in the UK.

Much of my experience has been in pharmaceuticals and biotechnology and this has largely contributed to my specialism in the area of Life Sciences. I also guide my clients through the regulatory landscape and have acted in some of the leading European cases regarding the protection of regulatory data.

I have always taken an active role in the IP profession generally. I am currently chair of the British Copyright Council and for several years I was the President of the UK group of the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI). I am also on the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) list of arbitrators.

I enjoy writing and in addition to numerous articles and book chapters, I have authored the following books: A User's Guide to Patents (Butterworths 2002; Tottel 2007; Bloomsbury 2011, 2016, 2019); Pharmaceuticals Biotechnology and the Law (Macmillan 1991; LexisNexis Butterworths 2009, 2016, 2023); EU Intellectual Property Law (Oxford University Press 2010); A European Perspective as to the Extent to Which Experimental Use, and Certain Other, Defences to Patent Infringement, Apply to Differing Types of Research (Intellectual Property Institute 2006) and The Protection of Regulatory Data in the Pharmaceutical and Other Sectors (Sweet & Maxwell 2000). I am a co-author of Practical Intellectual Property Precedents (with Audrey Horton) (Sweet & Maxwell 1998 to date); and International Intellectual Property Arbitration (with Alejandro Garcia) (Kluwer 2010). I am one of the general editors of The Modern Law of Patents (LexisNexis Butterworths 2005, 2009, 2014, 2018, 2021) and is editor of Sterling on World Copyright Law (Sweet & Maxwell 2015, 2018, 2023), Trade Secret Protection - A Global Guide (Globe Law & Business 2016, 2022) and The Patent Litigation Law Review (Law Business Research 2017 to date). I contribute to the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys European Patents Handbook (Sweet & Maxwell) and the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys Guide to the Patents Act 1977 (Sweet & Maxwell).
Education

Studied

  • B. SC (Hons Chemistry), Southampton

Admissions

  • Solicitor (1977)
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Lifetime Achievement Award for Intellectual Property Practice

MIP EMEA 2023 Awards

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