Best brains in ...

Patent litigation and making complex ideas simple.

Highlight of your career so far?

The lead associate for global pharmaceutical company Angiotech's appeal to the House of Lords in Conor v Angiotech, I helped overturn adverse judgments from the Courts of First Instance and Appeal. The House of Lords' judgment is now the leading case on obviousness.

Most challenging job you've ever done?

The Dr Reddy v Eli Lilly litigation over the olanzapine patent, a drug used in the treatment of schizophrenia. Involving ground-breaking law on selection patents, technically difficult evidence and a huge amount of disclosure, it was all handled by a small (but dedicated) team.

What about outside the UK?

I specialise in the life sciences sector. These clients are global, so it's rare for my work not to be international. The olanzapine patent was contested not only in the UK, but also in almost 30 countries across the world. I helped co-ordinate the litigation, ensuring that arguments, expert evidence and witness statements were consistent across each of the jurisdictions.

Another good example is the Intervet v Merial litigation. The same patents were the subject of litigation in the European Patent Office (EPO), Germany, the Netherlands and the UK, and I drafted evidence and formulated experiments used in each of the jurisdictions. I have also worked on EPO oppositions and appeals.

Dedication to client care? Prove it!

I always look after my clients. On one occasion I took some American clients, who were in the UK for a trial, to play golf in mid-January despite the fact I couldn't play. I had broken my wrist and badly damaged a knee in an accident, so I sat in the buggy and shivered while they played.

Best example of a creative legal solution?

Most solutions in the world of patent litigation take longer than a sentence or two to explain! However, one example was persuading the client, and then the judge, to allow us to run some experiments which at first blush appeared to prove nothing, but which on closer inspection won us the case.

How do you get under the skin of a client business?

Clients aren't always interested in the law; they want to know whether and how they can do what it is they want to do. I focus on understanding the client's objective and trying to make that happen rather than boring them with what the law is.

Experience

• Dyson v various supervising the Wragge & Co China office's work conducting investigations into and then action against a number of different manufacturers of copy bladeless fans.
• G-Star v Rhodi assisted in an ongoing action for infringement of design rights (registered and unregistered), Community Design Rights (registered and unregistered), copyright and passing off in the fashion industry.
• Eli Lilly and Company v Human Genome Sciences (First Instance, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court) assisted in a revocation action concerning a patent claiming the DNA sequence for Neutrokine alpha
• Assisted in co-ordinating Eli Lilly's European patent litigation for Olanzapine, liaising with local counsel in 27 different jurisdictions to review and approve draft legal briefs, expert reports and witness statements.
• Assisting Diversey in a successful Appeal against a decision of the EPO Opposition Division. The patent concerned a chemical formulation for cleaning-in-place products.
• Intervet (UK) Ltd v Merial (First Instance) assisted in a successful action to revoke a patent for the sequence of a porcine circovirus, and the successful defence against an allegation of infringement of the same patent. This patent was also the subject of revocation actions in the Netherlands and Germany and an opposition in the EPO. Drafted some of the evidence for the action in the Netherlands and attended that hearing.
• Dr Reddy Laboratories v Eli Lilly and Company (First Instance and Court of Appeal) assisted in successful defence of the validity of a patent for an antipsychotic drug. This patent was also the subject of revocation actions across Europe. Drafted some of the evidence for the action in the Netherlands, and attended that hearing.
• Eli Lilly and Company v Trident (First Instance) and v Neolab (First Instance) assisted in successful applications to obtain interim injunctions against the sale of Olanzapine. In these actions we obtained an unusual and draconian court order for disclosure of the details (customer names and quantities sold) of sales already made.
• Conor v Angiotech (First Instance, Court of Appeal and House of Lords) assisted in successful defence against patent revocation proceedings in landmark case on question of obviousness.

Professional experience

Tom joined Wragge & Co as a director from Howrey LLP in 2011. Tom represents Wragge & Co in China, advises UK and international clients on China-related work as well as Chinese companies on UK law, and acts as the link between the firm's Guangzhou office and its other offices. He is also responsible for the day-to-day management of the China office. Whilst at Howrey LLP Tom gained particular experience in handling multi-jurisdictional litigation, dealing with all aspects of intellectual property rights.

Specialisms

Intellectual Property

Business sectors

General

Education

• Date of joining Wragge & Co: 2011
• Year qualified and company qualified with: February 2005, Taylor Wessing
• Diploma in Intellectual Property Law, 2005-2006
• BPP Law School, Legal Practice Course, Post Graduate Diploma in Law, 2000-2002
• University of Nottingham, First degree subject: 2:1 B.Sc. in Genetics, 1996-1999

Memberships

• BioIndustry Association
• British Chamber of Commerce, Guangzhou
• European Union Chamber of Commerce, Guangzhou (vice-Chair of the IPR working group)

Publications and presentations

• Regular speaker for the British and European chambers of Commerce in Guangzhou
• Published articles on patent law in Patent World, Managing Intellectual Property and others
• IPKat contributor

Languages

Basic French and Spanish