Patents

In today’s competitive world, effective patent protection for your innovative products and for your new or improved manufacturing methods could be a key factor in the success of your business.  Sound advice on your inventions and on those disclosed in the patents of your competitors is essential for your business to prosper.

A patent is a legal protection existing in a particular country for an invention, allowing the patent owner to invoke the law to stop any unauthorised copying of the invention.  Patents can become extremely valuable business assets. 

The specialised technical disciplines of our patent lawyers enable us to handle inventions in all major fields of technology.  Chemistry, biosciences, materials sciences and food sciences are concentrated in our Bristol office, while physics, electronics, electrical and mechanical engineering and computer science, are handled from our London office.

The services that we offer include:

• Assessing the patentability of inventions
• Drafting, filing and prosecuting to grant British, European (EPC) and International (PCT) patent applications
• Instructing the filing and prosecution to grant of patent applications worldwide
• Patent searches, either to assess patentability or to determine freedom to operate
• Defending patents in European (EPO) opposition/appeal proceedings
• Filing oppositions against competitors’ European patents or otherwise applying for the revocation of competitors’ patent rights
• Advising on ways to avoid infringement of patents
• Assistance in enforcing patents against potential infringers
• Assistance with the assignment of patents and the formal recordal of assignments
• Maintaining patents in force
• Validating European patents
• Due diligence in business acquisitions
• Providing early advice to start-up and spin-out companies on establishing patent portfolios
• Obtaining a Supplementary Protection Certificate (SPC) for a medical product or for a plant protection product already covered by a UK or a European (UK) Patent
• Providing tailored lectures or seminars on the patents system

Additional Patent Information »