Patents
Allen & Overy’s top tier patent litigation team acts for the world’s leading companies in the most complex patent disputes.
A&O acts in multi-jurisdictional and national patent disputes across a range of sectors, particularly specialising in life sciences and technology. We represent clients in the many different courts and tribunals worldwide, leveraging the full range of dispute resolution methods to deliver commercial outcomes for clients.
We advise on the most significant and complex cases, including advising on some of the first disputes examining Standard Essential Patents and FRAND terms. We have also advised on cases involving Supplementary Protection Certificates and Second Medical Use.
A firm technical understanding is crucial to success. Many of our team members have technical backgrounds and industry experience and can advise with confidence in cases involving the most complex technologies.
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Our experience
Eli Lilly
in the defence of its patent on Cialis for the treatment of erectile dysfunction.
Samsung
in its French litigation adverse to Technicolor’s licensing arm on patents concerning 4G, video coding, and various smartphone features.
A multinational pharmaceutical company
in the complex enforcement of a patent relating to a valuable medicinal product. The patent covers the second medical use of a known active substance and the proper interpretation of patent claims is crucial to managing this litigation in Poland.
News & insights
Blog Post: 25 January 2022
The Belgian Federal Agency for Medicines and Health Products (the FAMHP) has reviewed its procedure to remove or add patented therapeutic indications or dosage forms from the generic medicines'…
Blog Post: 21 January 2022
Kickoff of the UPC: UPC Protocol on Provisional Application now in force
On 19 January 2022, the Unified Patent Court (UPC) came to life as an international organisation. Now, the preparatory phase for the official start of the UPC system can begin.
Publications: 20 January 2022
Kickoff of the UPC: UPC Protocol on Provisional Application now in force
On 19 January 2022, the Unified Patent Court (UPC) came to life as an international organisation. Now, the preparatory phase for the official start of the UPC system can begin.
Blog Post: 16 December 2021
Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property: what next for the UK?
There is still time to provide input to the UKIPO on copyright protection of computer-generated works, copyright exceptions for text and data mining and AI inventorship of patents as the government…
Awards and accolades
- Winner: IP Firm of the Year: Biologics/Biosimilars and IP Firm of the Year: Biotech, LMG European Life Sciences Awards 2020
- Winner: European Patent Litigation Firm of the Year, MIP EMEA Awards 2019
Recognition of our work
'It was a stellar team performance and we benefited from the pure value contributed,' a source reports, adding: 'There were no inefficiencies, it was seamless.
Chambers 2020 Life Sciences: IP/Patent Litigation
Allen & Overy remains a bellwether on the UK patent litigation market. Its all-star group ‘benefits from exceptional support provided by the wide full-service international firm’, and has been going from strength to strength of late.
IAM Patent 1000 2020
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