News

AA Thornton managers and partners discuss unconscious bias As one of the first signatories of the IP Inclusive Charter, it was great to be part of collaborative sessions for AA Thornton partners and managers discussing and raising awareness of our unconscious bias. Together we took part in some thought provoking discussions, facilitated by Catherine Hamilton from… Read more »

Discussing EPO developments and patentability of computer-implemented inventions in the era of AI In April 2019, the Charted Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) will lead a series of intellectual property roadshows in the USA, with participation from the Chartered Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys (CITMA), the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) and Sir Colin Birss,… Read more »

AA Thornton’s advice for EPO management EPO President Mr António Campinos invited AA Thornton to provide recommendations for the EPO’s strategic plan for 2019-2023, and our letter is shown below. AA Thornton has actively encouraged the EPO in several of its recent initiatives. The ‘Early Certainty from Search’ scheme and the recent major reorganisation of… Read more »

AA Thornton Partners Ian and Vanessa are mentioned in the 2019 edition of the World Trademark Review We are thrilled to announce that Partner Ian Gill and Consulting Attorney Vanessa Lawrence, have been, once again, recommended in the 2019 edition of the World Trademark Review (WTR) 1000: The World’s Leading Trademark Professionals, in the “prosecution and strategy” category…. Read more »

Reporting on the Queen Mary University’s Life Sciences, Cosmetics and Intellectual Property seminars for CNIPA Consulting Patent Attorney Julie Barrett-Major recently gave two 3-hour seminars at the Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) earlier this month on Life Sciences, Cosmetics and Intellectual Property. The two seminars formed part of the QMUL’s programme of education and training… Read more »

Reporting on the second annual ABHI Parlimentary Reception Attorneys Marianne Privett, Alex Bone and Chris Burnett from our Medical Devices team attended the second annual Association of British Healthcare Industries (ABHI) parliamentary reception at Westminster on Monday night. They were joined by over 200 guests, including Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Matt… Read more »

European Commission proposes changes to Supplementary Protection Certificates Supplementary Protection Certificates (SPCs) are an intellectual property right that serve as an extension to a patent right (for up to five years) specific to pharmaceutical and plant products that must undergo extensive testing and clinical trials before being authorised by marketing authorities in Europe. Earlier in 2018,… Read more »

 AA Thornton reflect on the past year in the battery and energy storage industries On the 4th and 5th of December, Patent Attorneys Marianne Privett and David Blair attended the ‘Battery and Energy Storage Show 2018’ hosted by Warwick University (with Matt Havron joining them on the 5th December). At the event, Marianne and David… Read more »

Suzanne Power reports on recent EUIPO Board of Appeal case – Nikken International, Inc. v Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited Trade Mark Associate Suzanne Power recently contributed to the December edition of the Pharmaceutical Trade Mark Group’s Law, Lore & Practice publication. Suzanne reports on a recent decision from the EUIPO’s Board of Appeal regarding preparations used… Read more »

AA Thornton celebrates IP Inclusive Week AA Thornton took part in the celebration of IP Inclusive Week, to showcase the importance of diversity and inclusion in the IP professions. At the start of the week, IP Inclusive launched a pack for running a work experience day, making it easy for firms to invite students to… Read more »