It’s our people that make the difference

Our partners and attorneys are highly qualified and highly experienced to advise you in all areas of Intellectual Property law. We advise start-ups, SMEs, and multinational corporations and ensure that your inventions, brands and designs are expertly protected.

Our specialist teams cover a huge range of industries and technical fields, from automotive and aerospace and electronics and electrical engineering to cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

Services

At AA Thornton, we provide a comprehensive service offering to help you protect your Intellectual Property and maximise your assets. By combining the expertise of patent and trade mark attorneys, as well as solicitors within a single firm, we can offer you a customised comprehensive service.

International

Our clients range from multinational corporations, to SMEs, to individual inventors, across a broad spectrum of industries. Our client base is centred in the UK but covers many other parts of the globe, notably Europe, North America, India and the Far East. We also work for overseas attorneys and professional advisers, representing their clients’ Intellectual Property interests in the UK, Germany and Europe.

Latest News


AA Thornton – ‘IP Detective’ Workshop

After last year’s positive feedback, we’re thrilled to bring back our ‘IP Detective’ workshops as part of the Summer of IP 2024 by IP Inclusive. Aimed at students, graduates and professionals looking for a change, the purpose of this workshop is to raise awareness of IP-related careers, and encourage a wider range of people to… Read more »


AA Thornton Recognised in Financial Times Europe’s Leading Patent Law Firms 2024

We are delighted to be recognised once again in the Financial Times’ annual listing of Europe’s Leading Patent Law Firms. This is the sixth edition of the FT’s special report, which is compiled following recommendations from industry peers and clients, and highlights just 208 firms across the whole of Europe. More than 10,000 patent attorneys… Read more »


EU Court Ruling: McDonald’s BIG MAC Trade Mark Partially Revoked

McDonald’s sees its ‘BIG MAC’ EU trade mark rights curtailed as the courts continue to crack down on evidence of trade mark use   The decision In a decision dated 5 June 2024, the EU’s General Court held that fast food giant McDonald’s had failed to prove genuine use of its BIG MAC trade mark… Read more »


Latest Insights


The slow and continuing expansion of the Bolar Exemption

The initial Experimental Use Exemption Acts done for experimental purposes relating to the subject matter of the patented invention have long been provided for as an exemption to patent infringement across the majority of European countries, i.e. those who have adopted the provisions of the Community Patent Convention in their laws.  In the UK this… Read more »


SPACE IP – The Importance Of Trade Marks And Branding

The following article was first published on Space East’s website. Trade marks and logos adopted by companies to promote their products and services are familiar to us all. Some of them may have strong associations or evoke memories of particular times, such as the packaging of food or drink we remember enjoying as children. Other… Read more »


Circular Textiles Foundation: Driving Sustainable Fashion

“The clothes we wear say something about who we are. Let’s make sure they’re saying the right thing.” – Colin Firth. The fashion industry, long celebrated for its design innovation, quality and speed to market, is increasingly scrutinised for its environmental impact. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) reports that the fashion industry is responsible… Read more »