Lewis Silkin hires Neil Parkes as partner
Lewis Silkin has appointed litigator Neil Parkes as a partner to the firm’s growing dispute resolution practice.
Parkes will serve at the London-based law firm as a commercial disputes expert focusing on media and entertainment—bolstering its presence in the increasingly litigious sectors.
Prior to this role, Parkes was a partner at Foot Anstey and acted as head counsel for UK broadcaster and telecommunications company Sky.
Parkes brings more than 20 years of experience as a dispute lawyer to the firm, during which he has litigated cases before the English High Court and appellate courts. He specialises in anti-piracy enforcement for the music industry and implementing new IP enforcement strategies in the digital media space.
Mark Lim, partner and head of dispute resolution at Lewis Silkin, said: “Neil’s appointment further swells the ranks of our innovative dispute resolution practice. He brings with him expertise that will prove invaluable amid rising client demand for specialist support with a range of general commercial disputes and IP litigation, notably in the digital media space.”
“Lewis Silkin has an excellent reputation and is especially renowned in the areas my practice is focused on.”
Neil Parkes
This addition follows another three partner hires Lewis Silkin made in January, when it added litigation partner Antony Craggs, corporate partner Geraint Tilsley and Hong Kong head of IP David Swain to the team.
Parkes is now the 15th partner in Lewis Silkin’s dispute resolution practice.
He commented: “Lewis Silkin has an excellent reputation and is especially renowned in the areas my practice is focused on, so I’m looking forward to working with this successful and talented team.
“The disruptive and innovative nature of digital media and tech can naturally lead to disputes and I’m excited to get to work on securing the very best results for Lewis Silkin clients.”
James Mellor QC appointed as High Court judge
An 8 New Square barrister who specialises in IP has been appointed as a High Court judge in England and Wales.
The appointment, announced January 20, means that well-known IP expert James Mellor QC takes up his new position in the Chancery Division on February 8.
The new appointment means that there will be two full-time High Court judges with a strong IP background in the Chancery Division. In September 2020, Richard Meade QC, also a former barrister at 8 New Square, took up his appointment as a High Court judge.
Mellor was called to the Bar in 1986 and joined 8 New Square as a barrister a year later.
He has acted in many significant IP disputes including Unwired Planet v Huawei and Samsung (2015), Rovi v Virgin Media (2015) and Argos v Argos Systems (2018).
John Linneker, co-head of IP at Fieldfisher, said: “Mr Justice Mellor is an excellent appointment to the bench. He is one of the foremost IP silks at the Bar, and will use his considerable experience, excellent judgement and knowledge of IP law to great effect as he embarks on his judicial career.”
“There will be two full-time High Court judges with a strong IP background in the Chancery Division.”
Mellor was appointed as a Queen’s Counsel in 2006 and was a member of the disability panel of the Bar council from 1999 until 2005. He served as an appointed person for trademarks and designs in 2015 and as a deputy High Court judge in 2020.
He has appeared at the Court of Justice of the EU in a number of references concerned with copyright, database rights and trademarks.
This appointment filled a vacancy in the High Court following elevations to the UK Court of Appeal and confirmed retirements.
HGF expands engineering team with new French partner
European IP firm HGF has hired engineering expert Vivien Verbrugge as a partner.
Verbrugge, who was previously group technology counsel at ITW, has experience in different industries including glass manufacturing, automotive, construction, electronics and telecommunications.
His practice covers mechanical, electronics, optoelectronics and telecommunications fields.
His appointment forms the next phase of HGF’s “ambitious growth strategy across Europe”, the firm said in a statement.
Verbrugge advises clients on portfolio creation, infringement avoidance and freedom to commercialise, portfolio enforcement and dispute resolution matters.
He has also advised on multi-jurisdiction portfolio acquisitions, secured successful outcomes in European Patent Office oppositions and coordinated many IP litigations.
Paul Sanderson, HGF’s CEO said: “HGF understands the importance for growth in Europe and we welcome Vivien to the firm. His experience and expertise will continue to strengthen our highly regarded specialist engineering team.”
“I look forward to helping to achieve the ambitious plans the firm has in place for future international growth.”
Vivien Verbrugge
Verbrugge holds a PhD in physics and optoelectronics for telecommunications (Université de Rennes), an engineering degree (Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon) and a Master of physics (Université de Rennes).
Before entering the patent profession, he spent four years in project management in the telecommunications industry and was named inventor in three different patent families.
“I am delighted to join HGF, I have had a relationship with the firm for quite some time and their growth has been impressive. I look forward to helping to achieve the ambitious plans the firm has in place for future international growth and development,” said Verbrugge.
Novagraaf acquires online brand protection specialist
IP services provider Novagraaf, part of NovumIP, has acquired online brand protection and anti-counterfeiting services company Thomsen Trampedach.
Switzerland-based Thomsen Trampedach, which also has expertise in the setup of new generic top-level domains and domain name portfolio management, already has a partnership with domain name provider BrandShelter.
The tie-up will add Novagraaf as a reseller of BrandShelter’s domain name management services.
“We at Novagraaf are firmly committed to meeting our clients’ IP needs as they navigate a fast-growing global online environment that provides both opportunities and threats”, said Lutgarde Liezenberg, CEO of Novagraaf.
“Today’s brand owners have to battle an increasingly sophisticated army of counterfeiters and online fraudsters. By combining the technology, enforcement knowledge and legal consultancy of Novagraaf and Thomsen Trampedach we are now even better positioned to provide smart solutions that protect and maximise the value of our clients’ brand, product name and domain assets.”
“We are now even better positioned to provide smart solutions that protect and maximise the value of our clients’ brand, product name and domain assets.”
Lutgarde Liezenberg
Thomsen Trampedach partner Jannik Skou will join Novagraaf as managing director of Thomsen Trampedach and as a member of the management team overseeing Novagraaf’s trademarks business.
“We are thrilled to join Novagraaf, which will enable us not only to broaden our product portfolio in the area of legal advice and IP portfolio management but also to leverage Novagraaf’s global presence providing 24/7 services to our clients across continents,” Skou added.
“Novagraaf and Thomsen Trampedach are a good cultural fit and I very much look forward to combining our services and our shared passion for protecting and promoting brands online and offline.”
In late 2019, Novagraaf and PAVIS, a leading company in the field of global patent annuity services, joined forces to launch NovumIP.
Stobbs launches ‘IP-as-a-service’ platform for brand owners
IP and brand law consultancy Stobbs has launched a new online platform aimed at brand owners.
Called iaidō, the service provides data analytics to brand owners who want to “track the effectiveness” of their trademark portfolio by “blending real-time consumer purchasing patterns with their brand IP”, said a statement by Stobbs.
The spin-out company has already enlisted global drinks company AB InBev, which helped develop and test the technology, as a client.
“We have built a solution that allows brand owners to build out their protection strategy and then compare it with their existing portfolio and business intelligence data. All large brands possess this type of data but rarely have reliable instant access to it on a day-to-day basis, to inform the strategic management of their assets,” said Lewis Whiting, iaidō’s founder and CEO.
“This is a fundamental need, and our solution has been designed to fill the gap in the IP software industry that currently exists—a complementary platform rather than replacing any existing solution.”
“iaidō will give users an instant picture of their IP performance.”
Lewis Whiting
By automating a series of manual processes and connecting “strategic brand expertise”, iaidō will give users an instant picture of their IP performance together with “practical, actionable outputs”.
Pieter van den Bulck, global director of IP at AB InBev, endorsed the new system.
“I was amazed by Stobbs’ and iaidō’s determination to offer previously non-existing solutions for some of brand experts’ biggest challenges, yet even more impressed by the end result.
“iaidō is very powerful, combining big sets of data at lightning speed with the ability to offer instant reporting on otherwise complex and time-consuming analysis,” he said.
Van den Bulck added: “It helped us to take the management of our trademarks to the next level, by freeing up resources and enabling previously unheard-of trademark analysis and reporting.”
Stobbs announced it had also launched /iambic/, an IP and legal case management system that can be used independently or in conjunction with iaidō.
Linklaters partner named as Charity Commission interim chair
The UK Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Oliver Dowden, has appointed Linklaters IP partner Ian Karet as the interim chair of the Charity Commission.
Karet’s tenure will run from February 27 to August 26 while the commission finds a permanent chair to replace Tina Stowell, who is stepping down after three years in the post. He will continue his role at the firm.
“We are proud to have one of our partners providing their service and expertise in support of the charitable sector,” said a Linklaters spokesperson.
With more than 30 years’ experience at Linklaters, Karet focuses on commercial IP issues including licensing, IP aspects of transactions and insolvency.
He joined the Charity Commission board in January 2019 and also sits part-time as a deputy High Court judge and is a member of the Civil Justice Council.
“Karet focuses on commercial IP issues including licensing, IP aspects of transactions and insolvency.”
