Carpmaels & Ransford LLP

Anna’s area of expertise is in biotech. She has a current focus on cell therapy, and carries out European patent prosecution of a large portfolio of patent applications in this rapidly developing and complex field. Innovation in the cell therapy field comes in many forms, and in addition to this diverse field Anna also works with clients in many other technology areas. In particular she has extensive experience in the areas of protein therapeutics, diagnostics and platform technologies. She has worked with clients of all sizes and types to develop and execute their IP strategies. At all stages, she focuses on building effective working relationships to ensure that clients’ objectives are fully understood. She has extensive experience of drafting patent applications, as well as prosecuting these and other applications at the EPO, and coordinating global patent portfolio prosecution. Running alongside her drafting and prosecution work, is her advice and contentious work. She has considerable experience of oppositions and appeals at the EPO, and supports clients with a variety of advice, including freedom to operate analysis and due diligence exercises. The technical expertise that Anna acquired in her studies and during her time as a patent attorney means that irrespective of the specific technology, she is able to think creatively and solve problems. Anna always looks for the bigger picture, but without losing sight of the technical detail. Her first class degree in Biochemistry from the University of Oxford gave her a broad understanding of the biotechnology field and she built on this with a PhD from the University of London. Anna’s research in cell and developmental biology was carried out at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund (now Cancer Research UK) and focused on intracellular protein targeting and signalling in development, specifically looking at EGF receptor family members and their signalling and intracellular targeting in polarised epithelial cells. Anna entered the patent profession in 2000, and joined Carpmaels & Ransford in 2013 from another large UK firm. While training she was awarded the Bill Caro prize for overall first place in the Certificate in Intellectual Property Law examinations. Anna is an active member of the IPO’s Women in IP Committee, and is a co-chair of the “Mentoring Across Borders” subcommittee. This involves coordinating group and pairs mentoring programs, which brings together participants from across the globe. She also participates as a mentor in the Social Mobility Foundation’s mentoring program for A-level students. Within the firm she takes a particular interest in recruitment and in the training of technical assistants. She is fluent in French, having lived in France previously.

Annabel qualified as a UK and European patent attorney in 2014. A key member of the Life Sciences team, Annabel has developed a practice with a strong focus in diagnostic and drug development platform technologies, including nucleic acid diagnostics, stem cells and organoids.  She works on award-winning and high-value technologies, particularly in regenerative therapies. She contributed to EPO consultations and panel discussions regarding the development of stem cell practice at the EPO, and continues to stay closely involved in developments in the field. Annabel also works on a wide range of biological therapeutic products in both human and veterinary fields, and advises in all areas of biotechnology. Most of Annabel’s time is spent leading teams in opposition proceedings at the EPO, where she is an experienced advocate in both offensive and defensive opposition and appeal hearings. Her litigation qualifications and experience with contentious proceedings across Europe, and further afield, set her up well for representing and advising clients in the new UPC forum. According to one client: “Annabel combines in-depth scientific understanding of the subject matter of the IP, intellectual creativity and broad knowledge on patent prosecution to create very successful patent portfolios”. Before entering patent law, Annabel studied Biochemistry at Oxford University where she specialised in oncology and biotechnology, and she subsequently worked in the medical publishing field, working closely with scientists in the write-up and presentation of cutting-edge research projects. Annabel has a keen interest in supporting and developing the next generation of UK attorneys. She sat on the Education committee at CIPA and led the student body from 2012-2013. She has also worked closely with the Holborn Community Association, developing projects that support STEM learning in local children at a young age.  

Ben has a considerable practice in the MedTech field which covers a broad spectrum of mechanical and software technology.  The ability to handle such a broad spectrum of work is supported by his electronics/software background and passion to understand how mechanical machines operate, especially in the automotive sector.  Ben’s practice also includes original drafting and handling extensive patent portfolios in a variety of technology areas including wireless communications, robotic process automation, call centre routing, and memory devices.  Ben also has a wealth of experience from handling a significant opposition portfolio across a number of different medical and electronics technology areas. Ben has a genuine interest in advising clients on protecting their software innovation, which includes several clients developing innovative AI solutions and often extends to areas that are at the fringes of patentability.  Ben provides pragmatic advice when it comes to deciding whether patent protection is appropriate and on how the law and guidelines can be navigated when drafting and prosecuting applications for software-based inventions. Ben is always keen to be involved with any emerging technologies, which currently includes developing best practices for handling work in the AI sector both in his day-to-day work and his membership of The Artificial Intelligence and New Emerging Technologies Committee of the Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO).

Bruce’s chemistry practice covers both industrial and medicinal chemistry, encompassing polymer chemistry, apparel and textiles, laundry technology, batteries and electrodes, composite materials, functional coatings, pigments and printing inks, catalysts, food chemistry, small molecule pharmaceuticals and targeted drug delivery. Bruce has extensive experience in contentious proceedings in the European Patent Office (EPO), appearing frequently before the Opposition Divisions and Technical Boards of Appeal. Bruce focuses much of his time on advising long-standing clients, whose commercial interests lie in established technologies, which can present a challenge in carving out commercially useful protection in a crowded patent landscape. Bruce also has particular expertise in generating patent portfolios for new developments in emerging sectors within these established fields.  Acting for significant UK clients highlights Bruce’s comprehensive abilities in drafting new patent specifications which, coupled with his familiarity of contentious proceedings in the EPO, provides invaluable expertise in generating the best possible scope of patent protection for new and developing products. He is responsible for establishing filing strategies and generating and managing large world-wide patent portfolios, with extensive experience in patent prosecution outside Europe, particularly in the US, Japan and China. Bruce’s approach relies on attention to detail in order to deliver pragmatic advice to compliment his clients’ commercial interests. His work has garnered praise in the independent guides to the legal profession, having been recognised as ‘tenacious’ in the Legal 500 publication.

Cameron focuses exclusively on the biotechnology and pharmaceutical fields, with an extensive EPO opposition practice (including many cases defending against multiple opponents) that runs alongside a large prosecution practice. These two areas often overlap, so strategic prosecution and parent/divisional strategies are a regular part of his workload. He is often engaged to advise clients at an early stage, in situations where future patent fights with competitors are inevitable. Cameron acts for biotech companies including Guardant Health and Mammoth Biosciences, but most of his time is spent acting for blue-chip pharmaceutical companies, including Novartis, Merck, Gilead, and Lilly. This work includes defending patents covering blockbuster products which have attracted numerous EPO oppositions, whether from traditional generics companies or from biosimilars. He often acts as lead counsel at the EPO, but also collaborates with other firms to provide a second pair of eyes, and frequently plays a support role for national litigations. Cameron has over 25 years of experience of inter partes proceedings at the EPO, both defending and attacking, and he is one of only a handful of attorneys to have represented a patentee in an EPO opposition (and subsequent appeal) involving more than 15 opponents. This experience means that he is often engaged to defend patents which provide crucial protection and exclusivity for blockbuster pharmaceuticals and biologics, including patents on new medical uses, dosing regimens, and formulations. In addition to that work, though, he also handles biotech innovations and has recently been defending Guardant’s groundbreaking work on liquid biopsy against several opponents. His biotech work goes back a long way, and he defended the “Southern” patents on DNA microarrays and spent two decades working on the inventions underpinning lifesaving meningococcal vaccines. The main independent guides to the legal profession regularly rank Cameron at the top of his field. He is recognised as a “highly experienced litigator” (JUVE 2023) with “great business acumen and a strategic mind” (Chambers & Partners). As well as advising on patent matters, he was a tutor for several years on the JDD residential course preparing candidates for the EQE opposition paper, and was an advisor to the IP monitoring group of the UK Government’s Human Genetics Commission. Cameron graduated from the University of Oxford where his work on the folding thermodynamics of fibronectin type III modules was awarded the university research prize and contributed to his first class degree.

Camilla is a Partner in the Dispute Resolution team. She has focussed on multi-jurisdictional patent litigation and advisory work for all of her career.  Camilla now works exclusively on matters relating to the life sciences industry and is recognised for her expertise in this arena. She has a degree in genetics and having spent time in-house at a large biotech company, Camilla has a developed a very strong understanding of both the technical and commercial world in which her clients operate. As one of the firm’s founding litigation partners and with nearly 20 years of experience, Camilla provides “outstanding litigation advice” (Managing IP). According to Legal 500 2022, Camilla "does an excellent job of overseeing a large team responsible for running a large contentious pharmaceutical patent litigation/enforcement program on a pan-EU basis." During the near 5 years that she has now worked at Carpmaels & Ransford, alongside the noted expertise of our patent attorney team, Camilla is often asked to advise on litigation planning and has a wide range of clients for whom she regularly consults on matters relating to UK litigation and associated advice.   She has also developed particular expertise for the strategic management of patent litigation which spans multiple jurisdictions and covers multiple patents. In addition to her expertise in patent litigation, Camilla has a strong understanding of the overlapping protections of patents and regulatory exclusivities and also supplementary protection certificates (SPCs). Her work is most recently exemplified by Camilla’s representation of clients in the UK High Court, Court of Appeal and at the Court of Justice of the European Union.  Recent examples of cases include Cubist-v-Hospira  [2018] EWCA Civ 12,  Actavis-v-Sanofi [2014] R.P.C. 20 but her career started with her involvement in cases such as Taylor-v-Ishida [2001] EWCA Civ 1092 and Haberman-v-Jackel [1999] 1 WLUK 492.

Chris’ practice is in the pharmaceutical area of life sciences. He handles cases relating to new chemical entities, formulations, polymorphs and dosage regimens for innovator clients such as Gilead and Novartis, and has successfully defended a number of commercially important patents protecting blockbuster products. Chris is experienced as lead counsel in multiparty EPO opposition and appeal proceedings (both in attack and defence), and in providing support during parallel national litigation. He also advises on complementary aspects of pharmaceutical IP, including SPCs and regulatory law. He has been commended for his work by Managing IP in IP Stars.Prior to joining Carpmaels & Ransford, Chris graduated with a first-class MChem degree from the University of Durham. He was awarded the BP prize for his Master’s work on trimeric cyclic assemblies of calix[4]arene-tethered bismerocyanine dyes. As part of his degree, Chris spent a year on an Erasmus exchange in Prof. Dr. Frank Würthner’s laboratory at the University of Würzburg, Germany.

As a Partner within the Engineering and Tech groups, Chris handles a diverse portfolio of technologies in the physical sciences, working with medical device businesses, OEMs in the automotive sector, semiconductor companies, and IT and telecommunications service providers. Chris’s experience in both strategic patent prosecution and opposition and appeal proceedings at the European Patent Office (EPO) has led to long-standing relations with international clients, most notably Johnson & Johnson, for whom Chris handles and defends a huge portfolio covering surgical devices and implants and ophthalmic devices and equipment, and Micron Technology, Inc., one of the world’s leading providers of advanced semiconductor solutions. Chris adopts an upbeat, ambitious and practical approach to his work, and is often called upon to advise on business-critical patent strategies, informed by his careful understanding of the objectives in view and his 30 years of experience in the industry. Notably, Chris defended Micron Technology’s synchronous DRAM business in Micron’s epic 13-year battle with Rambus, in which he successfully neutralized a series of European patents held by Rambus. These cases yielded valuable insights into a series of complex legal questions concerning the extent to which applicants for European patents can redefine the inventions for which they are seeking protection; subsequently, they have been used as a teaching resource by the EPO itself. Chris is a qualified litigator and has been deeply involved in patent litigation in all the English courts, including the Supreme Court, as well as in France, Germany and Italy. Chris enjoys applying the lessons learned from his extensive opposition practice and his involvement in litigation and is often called upon to engage with technologies outside his core practice where his insights have added significantly to the conduct of litigations and important opposition cases. Recent engagements have included forays into combination therapies and DNA sequencing. During his professional career, Chris has spent time serving on the Executive Committee of a major international law firm. He was a scholar of St. Peter’s College, University of Oxford, graduating with a first class degree in physics.

Daniel specialises in biologics and pharmaceuticals, with particular expertise in protein therapeutics, medicinal chemistry and vaccine technology. Much of his time is spent handling European Patent Office (EPO) opposition proceedings, in which he has extensive experience in attack and defence both at first instance and appeal. He is a sought-after oral advocate and was picked to lead the successful EPO oppositions linked to the widely cited US cases AbbVie v. Janssen and Amgen v. Sanofi. Aside from his opposition practice, Daniel carries out a range of patent work, including original drafting, prosecution at the EPO and overseas, opinions, and freedom to operate analyses. He is regularly involved in pan-European litigation, and has particular experience leading the EPO side of complex international disputes.  He is passionate about helping his clients bring their innovative medicines to market, with robust protection and free of competitor patents. He has an in-depth knowledge of the complex world of supplementary protection certificates (SPCs) for authorised medicines, having coordinated several business-critical SPC portfolios across the EU and advised on the infringement and validity of various third party SPCs. He has contributed to several SPC cases at the Court of Justice of the European Union, including Queensland (C-630/10), Neurim (C-130/11) and Abraxis (C-443/17). With the Unified Patent Court (UPC) now open for business, Daniel has been amongst the very first to bring an action at that court. Daniel has a global client base, from the US to Japan and Australia.  He is regularly in our Munich office and Europe more generally, where he focuses on the innovative pharmaceutical sectors of Germany, Switzerland and Denmark in particular.  According to The Legal 500, Daniel is “an excellent strategist and has the ability to engage in detailed aspects of a project while still maintaining perspective of the overall task. A creative problem solver”. He is also acknowledged as a “trusted adviser in the pharmaceutical space” by IAM Patent 1000.  In 2022, Daniel was nominated for UK Practitioner of the Year (Patent & Trademark Attorney Firms) by Managing IP. Before entering the profession, Daniel studied Natural Sciences at the University of Cambridge. He specialised in biochemistry, organic chemistry and molecular biology, and carried out research into the mechanisms of platelet activation in human blood. He also spent a long summer at Yale University investigating the genetics of protein trafficking in yeast.

David is a partner in the Life Sciences group and has a diverse practice, working with therapeutic proteins, modified nucleic acids and traditional small molecules. He frequently handles platform technology cases, from drafting provisionals to worldwide prosecution, and from divisional strategy to post-grant opposition. In addition, David’s familiarity with Supplementary Protection Certificates (SPCs) allows him to provide his clients with comprehensive advice and judicious strategy, drawing upon his experience of patent and regulatory exclusivity.David’s practice focuses on managing interrelated oppositions and appeals at the EPO, often providing strategic advice where his client is opponent in one case and proprietor in the next. He regularly defends patents against multiple opponents in oppositions involving 100+ documents and the very latest case law.His experience in EPO prosecution, opposition and appeal proceedings has led to significant financial success for his clients. Most recently, his guidance through the initial examination process led to his client, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, successfully defeating nine oppositions to maintain their commanding platform technology portfolio in the antisense space. David also handles opposition and prosecution work for Vanda Pharmaceuticals, including European cases regarding the method of treatment claims recently upheld by the US Federal Circuit and the subject of the recent USPTO memo on patent eligibility.Another of David’s specialisms is European patent term extensions (SPCs) for a wide range of products, including Jakavi, Rebif and Evarrest. Clients often rely on David to manage oppositions and patent prosecution that interlink with the SPC strategy. As part of this work, he assesses both the SPC and patent coverage, and the interplay with the regulatory protection available to his clients (including orphan protection). David is frequently involved in appeals against SPC refusals across Europe, including litigation in Spain and Sweden.

David leads the Dispute Resolution team at Carpmaels & Ransford and has over 25 years’ experience of handling complex patent disputes involving multi-jurisdictional litigation between major science and technology companies, in particular in the pharmaceutical and telecommunications sectors. He was recently awarded IP Lawyer of the Year: Pharmaceuticals in the 2020 LMG Awards. David has represented clients in some of the UK’s largest patent cases (including successfully acting for his clients all the way up to the Supreme Court in what is now the leading UK case on claim construction). David also has particular expertise in litigating patent-related disputes where they arise in the context of existing license agreements and in negotiating high-value licenses and settlement agreements for his clients. Known for “regularly engaging in multi-jurisdictional litigation between companies in the pharmaceutical and telecoms sectors, David makes even the most complex patent disputes look easy” (IAM Patent 1000 2020). Clients in Chambers & Partners 2021 comment that “he has amassed a lot of good experience working for innovators." and "I was impressed by his calm demeanour." During his career he has advised on ground-breaking cases which include securing victory for his clients in Kirin-Amgen, Inc. v Hoechst Marion Roussel Ltd. [2004] UKHL 46, the UK’s leading authority on patent claim construction. After obtaining a first-class degree in Chemistry, David worked in the immunodiagnostic industry before converting to law. He first qualified as a barrister before also qualifying as a solicitor. David’s experience in industry has given him a strong understanding of both the technical and commercial objectives of his clients.

Ed built his “enviable track record” (IAM Patent 1000) on some of the most difficult and complex cases in the life sciences sphere, including the longest life sciences opposition hearing in memory (eight days attacking EP 2 188 302 on behalf of Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC) and some of the most heavily opposed life sciences patents ever (22 opponents on EP 2 478 907 and 15 opponents on its parent, EP 2 061 561, on behalf of Janssen Oncology, and 14 opponents on EP 2 292 219 on behalf of Novartis AG). Ed’s sole focus is healthcare, and he has worked on numerous marketed pharmaceuticals across a variety of fields, leading the key patent defences on some of the world’s most valuable medicines of recent times. Complementing Ed’s advocacy before the EPO, Ed is “an original thinker” (Who’s Who Legal: Patents) with exceptional experience in patent lifecycle management, and a “powerful intellect with great SPC knowledge” (Who’s Who Legal: Patents), also advising clients on paediatric extensions and related regulatory exclusivities. He has coordinated many complex pan-European SPC portfolios, and has a detailed understanding of law and procedure relating to the Unified Patent Court (UPC). Ed has worked on some of the seminal European SPC cases of recent years, and consequently has been invited on a number of occasions to address the annual meeting of pan-EU SPC examiners. Along with his “terrific prosecution and SPC experience” (Managing IP), Ed has acted before the Court of Justice of the European Union, the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, the High Court of England and Wales and the UK Intellectual Property Office, and has managed litigations in many jurisdictions around the world.When not engaged in contentious work or prosecuting cases, Ed uses his “very impressive … breadth of pharmaceuticals knowledge” (IAM Patent 1000), coupled with his experience on big-ticket cases, to provide his clients with practical advice in relation to IP matters. This includes freedom-to-operate advice, transactional support, such as due diligence, and counselling relating to the UPC.Prior to joining Carpmaels & Ransford in 2003, Ed studied chemistry at University of Oxford where he was awarded a scholarship and a number of prizes for his academic performance, graduating with a first-class degree. After becoming a European and UK patent attorney, Ed qualified as a Patent Attorney Litigator, receiving the Hogarth Prize as the highest-ranked patent attorney in his year. Spurred by the advent of the UPC and his dual EU nationality, Ed more recently obtained the Milan European Patent Litigator qualification.

Emma is a Partner in the Life Sciences team and her work focuses exclusively on the pharmaceutical sector. Emma manages patent portfolios covering a wide range of different subject-matter within the pharmaceutical field including new chemical entities, medical uses, dosage regimens, manufacturing methods, new formulations, and polymorphs. Emma works for some of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, helping them to obtain patents protecting their most successful and commercially important medicinal products. Emma has significant experience in advising clients on all aspects of European patent prosecution but the majority of her time is spent assisting clients in defending their most valuable patents in post-grant opposition and appeal proceedings before the EPO. Emma has worked on some of the biggest multi-party oppositions at the EPO involving more than ten different opponents and has represented clients at oral proceedings before both the Opposition Divisions and the Boards of Appeal. In addition to her significant experience before the EPO, Emma works closely with our in-house Dispute Resolution team on several litigation projects, co-ordinating response strategies before the EPO and across Europe to ensure a consistent approach is adopted in all jurisdictions, whilst tailoring the submissions and amendment strategies to meet the individual needs of each local court. Emma also works closely with technical experts during the litigation proceedings drawing on her chemistry background to get to the bottom of the science behind the invention and assist experts with the preparation of their written reports. Emma joined Carpmaels & Ransford in 2010 after graduating from Pembroke College, University of Oxford that same year with a MChem in Chemistry. Emma qualified as both a UK Patent Attorney and European Patent Attorney in 2014.

Gary leads the Engineering and Tech groups at Carpmaels & Ransford LLP. He is a highly respected software and computer technology specialist, who handles a diverse portfolio of cases covering technologies ranging from electrical and electronic engineering, telecommunications, signal and image processing, semiconductor technology and measurement technology to medical systems and devices. Throughout his career Gary has represented a broad spectrum of clients, ranging from large multinationals such as Hewlett-Packard Company, Micron Technology and Johnson & Johnson, through SMEs such as TouchType (SwiftKey), to universities and individuals. He is recognised for his ability to tailor creative strategies to the differing requirements of his clients, creating and advising on patenting strategies, carrying out due diligence, and co-ordinating patent portfolios throughout the world. He has a wealth of experience in drafting patent applications in extremely diverse areas of technology, so as to ensure that they are robust in multiple jurisdictions. Gary manages a very large prosecution practice before the UK and European patent offices, and has handled numerous oppositions and appeals before the European Patent Office (EPO), both as opponent and defendant. He also advises his clients on the infringement and validity of UK patents, and co-ordinates subsequent negotiations and/or actions. Gary regularly advises his clients on the contentious and ever-developing area of patentability, in both the UK and European forums, of software and computer-implemented inventions, and inventions in other areas said to be excluded from patentability. Gary graduated from the University of Leicester, where he was awarded a Bachelor's degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering and a PhD in digital signal processing for research concerning simulation and analysis in electromyography, which included the application of Chaos Theory and Neural Networks to the problem of decomposing the clinical electromyogram.

Harvey is a Partner focussing on the Life Sciences and Chemistry sectors. With over 25 years’ experience at first instance and appellate level, Harvey is recognised as one of the leading attorneys and advocates in contentious proceedings before the EPO and is a respected strategist and formidable opponent. He brings a wealth of knowledge and insight to any contentious matter and has therefore been entrusted with the defence of many important patents for landmark drugs, especially in the context of parallel or anticipated ANDA litigation. In addition to his work in the contentious arena, Harvey is adept at navigating FTO issues and devising prosecution strategies to maximise the strength and reach of clients’ IP. Harvey has extensive experience with due diligence matters and in-depth knowledge of regulatory data protection, orphan drug designations, clinical trial exemptions, and patent term extensions such as SPCs. Harvey’s practice is focussed on biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, including NCEs and prodrug technology, protein and peptide therapeutics, antibodies, immunoconjugates and ADCs, antisense oligonucleotides, gene therapy, glycoengineering, cell and tissue culturing, and protein and peptide display platforms.  In addition to cases directed to APIs, he has been heavily involved in second and third generation patents on drug formulations, drug delivery systems, polymorphs, dosing regimens, and pharmacokinetics.  He has defended many important patents protecting landmark drugs such as Avonex® (interferon beta), Temodal® (temozolomide), Clarinex® (desloratadine), Humira® (adalimumab), Myozyme® (alpha glucosidase), Lexiva® / Telzir® (fosamprenavir), Soliris® (eculizumab), Velcade® (bortezomib), Eloctate® (recombinant Factor VIII), Alprolix® (recombinant Factor IX), Norvir® (ritonavir), Kaletra® (ritonavir and lopinavir), Constella® (linaclotide) and Ninlaro® (ixazomib citrate).  Harvey also practises in the fields of nutritional compositions, cosmetics, cosmeceuticals and diagnostics.

Hugh is the Managing Partner at Carpmaels & Ransford and a Partner in the Life Sciences team.  He has a large prosecution practice, spanning Europe and beyond, and he is a regular visitor to the European Patent Office (EPO), handling many oppositions and appeals. He has pan-European expertise in the filing and prosecution of supplementary protection certificates nationally, as well as considerable experience before the European Court of Justice, including the widely cited Queensland (C-630/10), Neurim (C-130/11) and Abraxis (C-443/17) referrals. Hugh has an “expansive practice” (IAM Patent 1000) with clients ranging from large and long-established global companies (e.g. Janssen, Takeda, Bristol Myers Squibb, Regeneron and Vertex) through to growing biotech companies (e.g., Akari, Radius Health, Hubrecht Organoid Technology, Translate Bio and Westway Health). During his career, he has been responsible for establishing the filing strategy and generating IP portfolios for a number of start-ups, guiding some of these clients all the way from early conception, through financing rounds and subsequent public flotation. His particular area of current focus includes biologics – in particular, therapeutic antibodies, complex immunology, biosimilar defence work and stem cell technology. Collectively, these experiences have developed Hugh’s ability to consistently and successfully protect foundation intellectual property and forecast potential future problems from the viewpoint of both IP generation and freedom to operate. Hugh has been noted as a “top-tier advisor” who “seamlessly links the firm’s prosecution division with its dispute resolution arm” (IAM Patent 1000). Hugh received his BA (Hons) in Biochemistry and his MA and DPhil from the University of Oxford. His experience at the bench was spent investigating mechanisms of drug resistance in cancer cells. In addition to his work at Carpmaels & Ransford Hugh is a trustee for the UK charity Pancreatic Cancer Action.

Ian is a Partner in the Dispute Resolution team and focuses on multi-jurisdictional patent litigation and intellectual property disputes. His clients and peers highlight his tenacity, excellence and shrewdness but perhaps, above all, his ability to manage and get the most out of a team.As well as litigating disputes in all areas of IP law, Ian is a strong user and supporter of alternative dispute resolution and is a member of the WIPO List of Mediators. Whether preparing witnesses for trial, or bringing together two warring parties, Ian pays attention not only to the legal and commercial issues, but also the psychology of the dispute and the parties in striving for success either at trial or through a negotiated resolution.Ian is known for his pragmatic, clear and direct approach to managing, resolving and handling disputes. He maintains strong relationships with his litigation colleagues as well as the specialist external IP barristers. Despite the stresses and tensions caused by many pieces of major litigation, Ian’s relationships with many of his clients have been long-standing, and no job is too small or trivial, or too large and unwieldy, for Ian and the Carpmaels and Ransford team to handle.Ian was Carpmaels and Ransford’s first litigation partner and during the last 20 years, Ian has litigated high profile patent cases concerning monoclonal antibodies, voice recognition technology, and audio and many other technologies; globally famous copyright cases for the world’s largest publisher; trade mark and passing off cases that have pushed upon the edges of the law.

Isobel advises innovator healthcare companies through all stages of the therapeutic product lifecycle. Much of her time is spent on contentious matters relating to exclusivity-driving patents protecting commercially valuable products, including patents for small molecules, polymorphs and salt forms, combination therapies and pharmaceutical formulations. She defends such patents in multiparty opposition and appeal procedures at the European Patent Office, and provides crucial support for pan-European enforcement and the defence of nullity actions. She recently completed the Politecnico Milano European Patent Litigator course focusing on the new Unified Patent Court, and is a European Patent Litigator qualified to represent her clients in this new forum. Isobel applies the perspective gained from her extensive contentious work to opinion work, FTO analysis and optimising prosecution for patent applications at the European Patent Office, including those for new chemical entities, drug delivery systems, dosage regimens and manufacturing methods in the pharmaceutical field. She also coordinates the prosecution of global patent portfolios for her clients. She has acted for some of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, including Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Novartis, Takeda Pharmaceuticals, Gilead Sciences, Ionis Pharmaceuticals and Vertex Pharmaceuticals . Isobel was named as a Rising Star in IP by Managing IP in 2018, 2019 and 2020, and continues to be listed as a notable practitioner. She was also listed in the patent category of the 2021 Legal Media Group Expert Guide. World IP Review listed her as one of 20 global trailblazers in 2020, as an influential woman in IP in 2022, and as a WIPR leader in 2023. Isobel holds a first class degree from the University of Cambridge, where she was awarded the GlaxoSmithKline Prize for the Best Organic Chemistry Research Project in her final year. Isobel is passionate about diversity and inclusion, including in the sector-wide IP Inclusive. She was a founding committee member of the LGBTQ+ network of IP Inclusive, IP Out, for which she is currently co-chair and she sat on the Women in IP committee for 6 years. She has also helped to coordinate several of Carpmaels' community outreach initiatives and to drive our extensive D&I programme, including launching an LGBTQ+ network.

Jake specialises in transactional and advisory matters involving intellectual property and technology. He advises clients across a variety of sectors including life sciences, software/technology, media and entertainment and retail. Jake’s work includes drafting and negotiating a wide range of IP/IT licences and commercial agreements, advising on the IP/IT aspects of transactions and also on matters relating to data protection and e-commerce.As well as his time in private practice, Jake has worked in-house at companies such as Gilead, GlaxoSmithKline, iris, National Air Traffic Services and John Lewis, giving him a strong understanding of the challenges faced by in-house counsel.Jake graduated from the University of Warwick with a degree in European Law before going on to complete his Legal Practice Course at the College of Law and then Lovells (now Hogan Lovells), where he trained and qualified as a solicitor in the IP/TMT team. Jake also has a post-graduate diploma in Intellectual Property Law and Practice from the University of Bristol.

James leads the Pharmaceuticals team at Carpmaels & Ransford. His practice focuses exclusively on medicinal chemistry inventions for pharmaceutical innovators and has a reputation for his imaginative approaches to legal and technical strategies on the most commercially important cases. His work is inevitably contentious in nature and he has considerable experience in conducting multi-opponent European Patent Office (EPO) opposition proceedings and James is one of only a handful of advocates to have first-hand experience of defending EPO oppositions with more than ten opponents. He brings practical experience of the subtle interactions of patent, supplementary protection certificate and regulatory law to these commercial situations.Individually recommended in MIP and IAM Patent 1000, and noted as “excellent” by Legal 500, James is particularly known for successfully prosecuting and defending NCE, combination, formulation, second medical use and dosage regimen patents on marketed products. In this sphere, he has advised on most of Novartis’ blockbuster products and has led numerous successful EPO opposition defences to generic challenges, most notably the multi-party oppositions against Novartis’ Exforge (valsartan/amlodipine), Glivec (imatinib) and Jakavi (ruxolitinib) products. He is also the lead European outside patent counsel for Gilead’s HIV and HBV portfolios, successfully defending Gilead’s TAF and cobicistat medicines, present in a variety of their blockbuster antiviral products, against multi-opponent oppositions. He represents Roche in EPO opposition and appeal proceedings and is a lead counsel for Janssen’s small molecule portfolio.James’ EPO opposition work frequently brings him into contact with parallel national litigation, and he is particularly sought out to bring his EPO and technical experience to litigation strategies throughout Europe and the world.Outside the small molecule space, James has a long-standing relationship with Ionis Pharmaceuticals, protecting its growing pipeline of antisense candidates.

Jenny is a partner in the firm’s Dispute Resolution team, ranked as a Next Generation Partner by Legal 500 (2022) and an Up and Coming Partner by Chambers & Partners (2022). Her patent litigation expertise focusses on biotechnology and pharmaceutical products, including blockbuster small molecule drugs, therapeutic antibodies and orphan medicines. According to Legal 500 (2022), Jenny is “one of the best patent litigators in London”. Jenny has litigated before the UK Patents Court, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, most notably the Eli Lilly v Human Genome Sciences cases, and the Warner-Lambert v Actavis (“pregabalin”) litigation. Jenny has since represented FibroGen against Akebia in a further significant and successful appeal to test the boundaries of UK law on sufficiency (Impact Case of the Year, MIP 2022). Jenny also specialises in complex SPC litigation and associated regulatory advice, many cases involving references to the CJEU or EFTA Court, including C-493/12 Eli Lilly v Human Genome Sciences, E-16/14 Pharmaq v Intervet, C-577/13 Actavis v Boehringer Ingelheim, C-443/17 AbraxisBioscience and, most recently, Teva v Janssen Pharmaceutica (Xeplion®). Jenny was awarded SPC Litigator of the Year at the LMG Life Sciences Awards (EMEA) in 2023 and 2022. As a “highly skilled patent litigator with an extensive knowledge of the pharmaceutical industry" (Chambers & Partners, 2022) Jenny increasingly assists her clients in this sector with cross-border patent and SPC litigation matters, working closely with the business and external advisers to align launch or enforcement strategies across Europe. Jenny joined Carpmaels & Ransford from her role as IP Litigation Counsel at Actavis/Allergan, where she handled high-profile patent cases such as Actavis v ICOS (tadalafil) and the LYRICA® (pregabalin) litigation – the first case before the UK Courts in which infringement of a second medical use patent was put in issue. Actavis successfully resisted an interim injunction and any findings of infringement at trial. Jenny trained and qualified at a magic circle firm after obtaining а first class honours degree in biochemistry from Imperial College, London, and а doctorate in molecular and structural biology from the University of Oxford.

John has extensive experience assisting tech and healthcare companies in all aspects of the patent lifecycle in the UK, Europe and globally, from invention mining, drafting and prosecution through to opposition, invalidity and enforcement proceedings. In particular, IAM in the Patent 1000 has noted his ‘superb’ ability to prosecute patent applications in Europe. In the healthcare space, John built the foundational patent portfolio for a top 10 pharma company for their various drug delivery platforms and defended them at opposition. In recent years, he acted in multiple EPO opposition cases against Huawei in relation to various software patents. He has also acted for LifeScan at the EPO in relation to their glucose management diagnostics technology, both on prosecution and opposition matters. More recently, he has been brought in to handle the European patent portfolios of fast-growing and innovative companies, such as Align Technology, Quantum-Si and Auris Health. John also acts for J&J Vision in relation to their ophthalmic laser surgery and intra-ocular lens technology. John advises a range of companies, from start-ups to multinationals, on a range of European IP issues, including infringement and enforcement of patents and design rights, and licensing issues. He is routinely brought in to handle complex FTO and clearance projects for a variety of US and European companies across the healthcare sector. As the lead patent attorney on various litigation cases in the UK, including Align Technology v ClearCorrect in relation to the former’s Invisalign® technology, and AMO Development v Alcon in relation to Alcon’s LenSx® ophthalmic laser surgery platform, John has brought in-depth technical knowledge and strategic perspectives to bear on these cases from a European standpoint. John is an Engineering graduate of the University of Oxford, where he specialised in biomedical engineering and electronics. He is a council member of the UK Group of the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI). Prior to joining Carpmaels & Ransford, he worked for a leading technology product development consultancy in Cambridge.

Jonathan is dual-qualified as a solicitor and trademark attorney. His background in brand protection enforcement and management coupled with IP and commercial advisory work, has led to his long-standing relationship with one of the world’s largest entertainment companies and other global companies including Western Digital, Allergan and Biogen Idec. Jonathan regularly advises on complex trademark opposition cases and EU-wide brand clearance in a range of fields, from pharmaceuticals to anti-counterfeiting and enforcement strategies, and from brand co-existence, comparative advertising, and the IP aspects of major acquisitions and disposals. Recent work includes dispute management and business ventures, providing “quick, thorough and practical” advice (Managing IP), for one of the world’s leading entertainment companies. Jonathan has also been involved in the strategic management of a global pharmaceutical company’s European brand portfolio, encompassing eye care, obesity, neuroscience and aesthetic medicines.

Mark leads the Biotechnology team at Carpmaels & Ransford. Mark’s impressive Biotech-only practice focusses on the rapid and effective building of commercially valuable European patent portfolios for small and medium-sized clients. Mark enjoys devising and implementing pragmatic drafting, filing, prosecution and defence strategies for the European Patent Office, in close collaboration with his long-standing clients. Mark also has a proven track record in co-ordinating large global patent portfolios for the firm’s clients, most notably Ionis Pharmaceuticals. Mark works closely with clients to devise family and portfolio-wide filing and prosecution strategies, and to implement these strategies across large numbers of cases in a variety of territories, minimising the burden on the client team. Mark has very substantial experience of both pre-grant (examination and appeal) and post-grant (opposition and appeal) proceedings before the European Patent Office, as well as abundant experience prosecuting cases before the UK Intellectual Property Office. This has resulted in an enviable reputation for obtaining and defending broad early claims to important new Biotech innovations, including for important cases originating from leading global academic institutions, including Stanford University. Mark also regularly advises clients on freedom to operate and enjoys working closely with the firm’s Dispute Resolution and Transactions teams to provide clients with holistic IP advice. Mark has been centrally involved in the filing and prosecution of many European patents on antisense therapeutics, especially for Ionis Pharmaceuticals, including those covering Kynamro® (mipomersen) and Spinraza® (nusinersen). Recently, Mark has been pivotal to the successful prosecution and defence of key patents on an adult adipose stem cell product. Mark also has detailed knowledge of current commercial non-invasive pre-natal testing (NIPT) methods including Verinata Health’s verify® test, having prosecuted and defended multiple patents in this area, including Stanford University’s ‘Quake’ patent estate. Mark joined Carpmaels & Ransford in 2001, shortly after graduating from Oxford University with a first class Masters degree in Molecular & Cellular Biochemistry, with specialisms that included Biotechnology and Immunology. His undergraduate research project involved surface plasmon resonance binding studies with CD147 fusion proteins.

Matthew is a Partner in the Life Sciences group. Matthew spends the majority of his time counselling clients in the pharmaceutical sector on strategies for maintaining market exclusivity in Europe. In this role he has assisted some of the world’s largest drug companies in protecting their intellectual property. At the core of Matthew’s practice is his experience representing clients before the European Patent Office in ex parte examination proceedings and inter partes opposition and appeal proceedings. He has handled complex multiparty opposition proceedings (in attack and defence) relating to a variety of commercial respiratory, oncology and analgesic products and his endeavours for clients have taken him all the way to the EPO’s Enlarged Board of Appeal.Alongside this, Matthew has experience advising on SPC strategies and regulatory exclusivity relating to medicinal products in Europe.  He also has experience in providing litigation support in circumstances where parallel EPO and national court proceedings are pending.Matthew has successfully managed cases relating to a range of different pharmaceutical subject-matter including NCE’s, combination therapies, second generation products, formulation technologies, dosage regimens, polymorphs, vaccine adjuvant systems and API manufacturing processes. He has also worked extensively in the industrial chemical sector, handling technologies ranging from the synthesis of chemical intermediates such as acetic acid, vinyl acetate, adiponitrile, caprolactam and their downstream uses, to those relating to the polymer and petrochemicals industries. Additionally, Matthew has represented clients in the speciality chemical sector, advising on inventions relating to ionic liquids, surface coatings and artificial sweeteners, amongst others. Matthew has also gained valuable commercial experience whilst on secondment to a pharmaceutical company during his training. Matthew is the Vice Chair of the IPO’s European Practice Committee. He is actively involved in committee work and regularly speaks at IPO events.

Natalia specialises in complex biotechnological subject matter, in particular cell and gene therapies, nucleic acid technologies, antibody-based drugs and engineered therapeutic proteins. She handles mainly European prosecution and opposition cases that require a coordinated strategic approach and often involve multiple parties and associated ongoing or looming disputes. Natalia has particular experience obtaining and defending key patents in relation to commercially valuable products and technologies, as well as advising on and attacking competitors’ IP. A large part of Natalia’s work also involves advising on SPCs, and she has been closely involved in high profile SPC litigation nationally and at the CJEU. Natalia has a PhD in Immunology from Imperial College London, on top of an MRes with Distinction in Biochemical Research from Imperial College London and a First Class BSc in Biochemistry from the Technical University Munich, Germany. She is an alumni of the Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes, the DAAD and the Hans Weisser Foundation, some of Germany’s most prestigious academic sponsors. Natalia joined Carpmaels & Ransford as a trainee in 2011 and qualified as a Chartered and European patent attorney in 2015, and additionally obtained the IP Litigation Certificate in 2016. Natalia was named as a Rising Star in IP by Managing IP in 2020, 2021 and 2022. Natalia is fluent in English and German.

Paul sits within our Engineering and Tech teams, predominantly working within the healthcare sector, for innovator SMEs, joint ventures and multinational healthcare companies. He particularly enjoys working with companies in the life sciences sector to develop patent portfolios covering engineering and technology innovations. Recently this has involved working for clients in areas such as electrochemical molecular diagnostics, cytometry and bioelectronics. Paul also handles a significant prosecution and opposition workload across a number of different medical devices, including minimally invasive surgical instruments, endoscopic accessories, sutures and injection devices.Paul’s contentious work involves EPO oppositions, at both first instance and appeal. In these matters he is quick to confront weaknesses in a case, and works creatively to strengthen them, first by thinking around a problem, and second by talented advocacy. Lately he has notched up several notable victories, which are the culmination of wider due diligence strategies that Paul has developed and maintained for his clients over a number of years. To that end, Paul is experienced in coordinating cost-effective clearance and monitoring projects aimed at keeping a close watch on his clients’ interests.Paul also works with a number of clients in a variety of other exciting engineering sectors including defence, commercial laundry, safety razors and energy storage. Whatever the field, Paul works hard to develop an understanding of the challenges facing industry and whether building a portfolio, or devising a freedom to operate strategy, adapts his approach to suit his client’s circumstances and goals. With the scene set, he applies unquenchable enthusiasm and a decade of first class experience to his work.Paul’s client work is complemented by his long-standing involvement with Tech City. He has provided one-to-one IP clinics for various start-up companies and university enterprise ventures for several years. Most recently, Paul hosted an interactive session for students at London Southbank University’s Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, sharing his knowledge and experience in design rights.

Roger’s extensive and varied practice covers the full trade mark life-cycle, from the inception of a brand, protection via the registration process, commercialisation of rights, and enforcement in opposition actions, cancellation actions and litigation. Roger enjoys long-standing relationships with clients across a diverse spectrum of sectors, ranging from media and entertainment, tourism, fine foods and wine, through to pharmaceuticals and agricultural chemicals. He has experience around the world, particularly in the UK and Europe.Roger leads the Trade Marks team, alongside Jonathan Day, representing and supporting high profile clients including Polaroid, Bear Grylls, Allergan and Autoglass/Carglass. Roger guides his clients through the complex issues surrounding trade marks, including clearance and brand counselling, applications, oppositions, and cancellations before the UKIPO, the EUIPO and WIPO, as well as litigation. Roger is highly valued by his clients due to his “first class advice and quality service” (IP Stars).

Simon is a partner in the Dispute Resolution team whose practice focuses on multi-jurisdictional patent litigation across all industry sectors, but particularly on the various aspects of the healthcare sector. Simon has litigated high-profile cases before the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal and High Court concerning both patents and SPCs. His experience includes cases involving blockbuster small molecule, antibody, and non-biological complex drugs, and medical devices. Simon’s expertise also encompasses the chemical sector, and he has assisted in cases involving polymers and industrial chemical processes. Much of Simon’s work involves cross-border litigation and he has extensive experience assisting as co-counsel in litigation taking place across Europe and elsewhere, including the US and Asia. Simon’s strong scientific background, which includes a doctorate in chemistry from the University of Oxford and post-doctoral research experience, gives him a deep understanding of the technical side of the healthcare and chemical sectors. Coupled with his cross-border patent litigation experience, this means Simon is very well-placed to assist his clients to develop successful patent enforcement and defence strategies. Simon joined the firm in 2018, having started his career at another London-based patent firm. Simon is also a regular volunteer with the Holborn Community Association After School STEM Club, which helps children in Holborn to develop their scientific understanding practically through STEM activities.

Stephen’s work has a particular focus on biological therapies, often contentious and involving complex immunological aspects in their mechanisms of action. Stephen’s involvement on these matters ranges from co-ordination and support roles on pan-European litigations, attacking and defending patents in EPO opposition proceedings and on appeal, through to pressure testing patents before their assertion in litigation, including in the anti-TNF, anti-IL12, anti-IL23, anti-IL6, anti-integrin and more recently the anti-PCSK9 and immuno-oncology fields. He also has a prosecution and advisory practice relating to European patent applications, SPCs and regulatory exclusivities, encompassing biosimilars.Stephen has a real understanding of the business drivers of his work, which was developed through a six month secondment working in-house at the US patent law department of a global pharmaceuticals company.Following his PhD, Stephen worked at GlaxoSmithKline in antibody discovery and engineering. Here he trained in the wet-lab techniques that underpin the matters he works on day-to-day, from phage display to assays for the biophysical and functional characterisation of the antibodies he made. His work at GSK led to patent applications for anti-TNFR antibody-based molecules.Stephen also sits on the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) litigation committee which assists the UK IPO by commenting on draft legislation and coordinates litigation training for UK patent attorneys.

Susan is a Partner in the Chemistry team at Carpmaels & Ransford. She has a leading opposition and appeal practice, frequently representing clients before the Opposition Divisions and Boards of Appeal in hearings at the European Patent Office. Susan has vast patent experience, with particular strengths in consumer products, medical devices, food science, formulation chemistry, and fine chemicals, as well as industrial chemistry, catalysts, and polymers. The diversity of Susan’s patent experience, coupled with a sharp insight, allows her to adopt the right strategy for each case, enabling the best result for the client. Susan has considerable experience in all patent related issues associated with the corporate environment. She previously worked for ten years in the patent department at Unilever PLC, qualifying as a European Patent Attorney and Chartered Patent Agent in 1994. Susan’s work within key product categories at Unilever PLC, included detergent and homecare products, personal products and food categories. In addition to her range of patent work, Susan has been involved in revocation and infringement actions in the High Court in the UK, as well as litigation, in a number of other jurisdictions. These include nullity and infringement actions in Germany, saisie proceedings in Belgium and cross-border injunction proceedings in the Netherlands. She has also been singled out in Legal 500 for her success in large opposition proceedings with PATMA, 2017, confirming how she “successfully prosecuted and defended a key patent for […] Johnson and Johnson Vision Care in a cross border matter against four oppositions from other major manufacturers.” Due to her substantial knowledge and experience within the industry, Susan is a member of the European Law, Chemistry and Food & Drug committees at AIPLA (American Intellectual Property Law Association). She is also an active member of the AIPLA Women’s network and regularly attends the AIPLA meetings. She is an experienced tutor for the European Qualifying Examinations for CEIPI (Centre d’Études Internationales de la Propriété Intellectuelle) in Strasbourg. Susan was recently recognised in the IAM Patent 1000 “for her flourishing opposition and appeal practice in fields as varied as consumer products, food science and polymers”. According to IAM she is “held in the highest esteem by peers and masterfully navigates oppositions before the EPO”. Susan is regularly included in MIP’s Top 250 Women in IP and was recently listed as a top 80 Influential Leader in WIPR’s Influential Women in IP.