Earlier this month, two members of Marks & Clerk’s dedicated UPC litigation team, Thomas Prock and Gareth Williams, travelled to Italy to participate in the culmination of The Industrial Property Course – Patents, organised by Politecnico di Milano. The course is aimed at providing professional training in the intellectual property (IP) field, with a specific focus on the Unitary Patent and the Unified Patent Court. The programme consisted of a highly detailed, online programme of study ahead of three days of practical exercises and mock trials in Milan.
Robust, effective training forms the foundation of everything we do at Marks & Clerk, which is why we have invested a significant amount of time and effort to ensure our UPC knowledge really is best in class.
“Despite a substantial time requirement to get the most out of this course, Gareth and I found it incredibly beneficial. Whilst Marks & Clerk has considerable opposition and litigation experience – and many of our attorneys will enjoy the grandfathering rights that give us a right of representation, like many other European attorneys – we have been incredibly grateful for an opportunity to be truly UPC ready”, says course participant and Partner, Thomas Prock. “Our lecturers were able to provide fascinating insights into the new legislation; some of whom were involved in the creation of the UPC from the start, but it was also fascinating to be part of a pan-European cohort of students as the course draws people from near and far,” continued Thomas.
Graham Burnett-Hall, a member of Marks & Clerk’s Litigation Team was invited to lecture on the course: “It was incredibly exciting to be at the heart of the development of a new legal landscape for European patent disputes. From start to finish, this course provided all participants with a great opportunity to learn from other leaders within their fields, and contribute to the successful development of the project.
“Marks & Clerk has a very experienced litigation team comprised of solicitors and patent attorneys who understand both the intricacies of multi-jurisdictional legislation, and the practical complexities that can arise as a result of IP litigation disputes. To have key members of this team play an active role in such an important course provides an indisputable benefit to our clients,” continued Burnett-Hall.
Partner, Gareth Williams who also participated in the course added, “Having conducted the majority of our learning online, the residential, practical sessions were especially valuable. I think I speak on behalf of us both when I say how rewarding they were – especially to receive incredibly positive feedback from industry leading experts of such high calibre. The mock trial, in which we pursued infringement and defended validity of a patent to a mop and bucket truly allowed us to put everything we have learned into practice which was highly enjoyable.”
To learn more about Marks & Clerk’s UPC and Unitary Patent expertise, please visit our dedicated UPC hub or by emailing upc@marks-clerk.com.