Will is an intellectual property lawyer with a focus on the litigation and licensing of patents.
He advises major corporations and other entities in the TMT, Life Sciences and other technology sectors. He has litigated patents covering telecoms, electronics, semiconductors, software, pharmaceuticals, drug delivery mechanisms, biotechnology and mechanical engineering.
Will handles litigation in the Patents Court, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court and Court of Appeal, as well as various arbitration procedures. His high-profile cases in recent years include the Rovi (TiVo) v Virgin Media patent litigation regarding electronic program guides (EPGs), network communications and internet applications, and his other work for TMT clients relates to software, gaming, memory devices, mobile phones, mobile web browsers, PVR/STBs, interactive television and user interfaces. His work for pharmaceutical companies ranges from preliminary injunction analysis to full trial on infringement and validity issues. He advises clients regarding standards essential patents, SSOs and FRAND issues and has led a major arbitration recently over “reasonableness” of major telecoms patent licence fees.
He regularly advises clients in multi-jurisdictional disputes with parallel proceedings in the USA and/or the key other European jurisdictions, as well as non-contentious aspects of IP.
Chambers & Partners has described Will as “highly sought after for his knowledge of the law surrounding standard-essential patents”, and he has been hailed by the Legal 500 as “outstanding”. Will has been listed as a recommended Global Leader for patents in WWL and listed a ‘Patent Star’ by Managing Intellectual Property, which has described him as “a very thoughtful litigator” who is “strong on strategy and a worthy adversary”. He is also recommended by the IAM Patent 1000 guide.
He joined the firm as a partner in January 2010 following five years of partnership at a major City firm. Outside work, his interests include family life, triathlon, golf and tennis.
Educational Qualifications
Higher Rights of Audience (Civil Proceedings) (2003)
Diploma in Intellectual Property Law, Bristol University (1995)
Qualified as a Solicitor in England & Wales (1994)
MA in Engineering, Cambridge University (BA 1987-1990)
Example Cases
Rovi v Virgin Media / Tivo
Gemstar-TV Guide v Virgin Media
Philips v Nintendo
SanDisk v Kingston
Eckoh v Semafone
Hynix Semiconductor v Rambus
Texas Instruments v Hyundai Electronics
Grimme v Scott
Buehler v FP Spomax
Ferag v Mueller Martini
Weatherford v BJ Oil Services
Bayer v Octopharma
Biogen v Medeva
GlaxoSmithKline v Wyeth
Pfizer v GlaxoSmithKline