Intellectual Property

Leading the market & understanding your issues & protecting your inspiration & acting internationally, while thinking locally & complete confidence & that’s IP with Bird & Bird

"Bird & Bird's pedigree in IP law is undisputed"

Who's Who Legal 2016

Overview

Bird & Bird has been at the forefront of IP for more than 100 years. This experience, quality of our work and passion for innovation differentiates our International Intellectual Property Group.

With over 300 highly specialised lawyers in 28 offices, we have one of the most respected intellectual property teams in the world. While our clients include some of the world’s leading brand names, we are also committed to helping small and medium businesses protect their valuable intellectual property.
 
Commercial awareness is key in a constantly evolving marketplace. We are recognised as thought leaders in IP; we take a cutting edge approach and provide tailor-made IP strategies that drive competitive advantage. Whenever there is innovation in an industry, we follow it.
 
It’s this reputation that has seen us involved in a number of ground-breaking decisions for our clients, across the full spectrum of our IP offering.
 
Our key areas of expertise include:

Heads of Group: Christian Harmsen in Düsseldorf and Morag Macdonald in London.

See also:

Accolades

  • "Remains an unquestioned leader at the very pinnacle of IP law"

    Chambers UK 2016

  • "I rate them highly - there is a consistency of quality across the IP team as well as an understanding of the wider commercial context."

    Chambers UK 2017

  • Trophée d'or du meilleur cabinet français en droit des Marques (Gold Award: Best Law Firm in Trademarks)

    Décideurs Magazine, Leaders League 2017

  • “Flawless service” is the name of the game for Bird & Bird’s China operation, "The international colossus spares no effort for clients"

    IAM Patent 1000 2016

  • Bird & Bird is ‘the premier patent litigation firm; it has the deepest bench of skilled patent litigators of all the European firms’ and it supplements this patent expertise with ‘an excellent’ trade mark practice'.

    Legal 500 UK 2016

  • "Bird & Bird's pedigree in IP law is undisputed"

    Who's Who Legal 2016

  • Despite the firm’s long and fabled history, clients admire its perpetually fresh, “out-of-the-box thinking”

    WTR 1000, 2017

  • "Bird & Bird is a global IP powerhouse with a gilt-edged reputation"

    WTR 1000, 2017

  • "Heavily involved in the preparations for the Unified Patent Court, no firm is better placed for the new regime soon to be ushered in to Europe"

    IAM patent 2015

  • "Top tier firm Bird & Bird is 'Universally respected practice advising on high-profile contentious and transactional patent, copyright and trade mark matters for blue-chip clients across the continent'"

    Chambers Europe-wide 2015

  • "The firm have a great ability to work as a team and always have the clients' interests at heart."

    Chambers Europe-wide 2015

  • "The practice is well regarded and has developed a reputation for high-end work."

    Managing IP - IP Stars 2015

  • "The thing I like about them in general is their very good understanding of our business, what our commercial needs are and of the commercial challenges we face,” says a client. Peers say the team “stands out on its own in the market”.

    Managing IP - IP Stars 2015

  • "Very efficient and knowledgeable, and good at translating difficult situations into something workable."

    Chambers Global 2015

  • "No other firm is recommended in more countries in the IAM Patent 1000, and no other has as many individuals highlighted, than IP titan Bird & Bird; in terms of strength in depth, it is second to none"

    IAM Patent 1000 2014

  • "Bird & Bird ‘exceeds expectations’ in developing trade mark strategies, administering vast portfolios and litigating with ‘amazing success rates’"

    Legal 500 EMEA 2014

Recent highlights of work

  • We acted for Nokia against IPCom, in the biggest and longest running patent litigation in the communications sector, resulting in over 60 of IPCom's patents being found invalid. Bird & Bird has acted on the litigation in the UK, Germany and Italy (and the EPO) which is ongoing but with the bulk of the issue now being resolved, the result has been an overwhelming success for Nokia. This work saw the team win ‘TMT Team of the Year’ at the 2013 Legal Business Awards.
  • Over the years our advice to long-term client Mattel Inc, has included representing them in the first pan-European unregistered design right injunction against Simba Toys in respect of a design for a doll, as well as in trade mark proceedings against an App manufacturer and distributer, relating to Mattel’s world-renowned Scrabble game.
  • We successfully represented the European Central Bank in eight parallel patent revocation proceedings relating to anti-counterfeit technology which was, according to the patentee, allegedly contained in the Euro banknotes. We coordinated responses through our offices in Germany, Spain, Belgium, France, Italy, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom as well as through associated firms in Austria and Luxembourg. We continue to represent ECB on this matter in Spain.
  • We represent the world's leading luxury group Richemont in a number of their prominent international IP enforcement cases, including multi-national litigation for their leading brands Cartier and Montblanc.
  • As well as providing strategic commercial advice in Europe and Asia, we are acting for Honeywell in various patent infringement proceedings in Germany, Italy and Poland and are also co-ordinating proceedings in Turkey and Portugal. We have also provided advice and coordination for Honeywell at the EPO and in a number of other EPC states.

Contacts

Harmsen-Christian

Christian Harmsen

Partner
Germany

Call me on: +49 (0)211 2005 6000
vCard Location
Macdonald-Morag

Morag Macdonald

Partner
UK

Call me on: +44 (0)20 7415 6000
vCard Location

View further contacts

Related materials and downloads

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  2. 1506-2017

    Substantial fine imposed on two entities for using unlicensed software

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  3. 1206-2017

    UPC: German ratification stayed pending resolution of judicial challenge

    Today, we learned that the Office of the President of the Federal Republic of Germany has agreed to suspend the Presidential signature required for formal ratification of the UPC Agreement until the German Federal Constitutional Court (“Bundesverfassungsgericht”) has reached a decision in the ongoing expedited proceedings relating to an action (“Verfassungsbeschwerde”) challenging said ratification, proceedings pending under docket no. 2 BVR 739/17.

  1. 1206-2017

    Bird & Bird named 'one of the world's foremost IP heavyweights' in newly released IAM Patent 1000

    Bird & Bird has yet again secured a great set of results in the latest edition of the IAM Patent 1000 guide to patent practice.

  2. 3105-2017

    MIP announces the top 250 Women in IP and this year's 'IP Stars': Bird & Bird once again proves its strength in the IP world

    The number of Bird & Bird female practitioners recognised in the most recent results of MIP's Top 250 Women has again surpassed all other firms across the globe and has in fact increased from last year.

  3. 3005-2017

    Bird & Bird wins "IP Specialist Firm of the Year" at the Australasian Law Awards

    Bird & Bird was awarded "IP Specialist Firm of the Year" at the Australasian Lawyer Awards held at The Star in Sydney, along with over 675 of Australia's leading legal professionals. This achievement recognises the firm's significant momentum and growth of Bird & Bird's IP capabilities in Sydney.

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