Dunner was
representing Allcare in one of two cases concerning attorneys
fees heard by the Court yesterday (see our preview for more details). I
haven’t seen any reviews of his performance yet,
though he’s to be congratulated on generating some
laughter in the Court, thanks to banter with Chief Justice
Roberts over – ironically – legal fees (see
transcript, page 30).
Meanwhile, many of the firm’s top names had
flown over from Washington DC to the UK for its seminar. Christine Lehman gave us a useful
guide to the International Trade Commission, including the
controversy surrounding the Federal Circuit’s
recent Suprema decision, while Gregory
Gramenopoulos provided some fascinating figures on IPR and CBM cases at the USPTO. He revealed that
over 1,000 have been filed, of which 70% are in the
electrical/computing area; so far, only one patent has been
partially upheld. As he said, the best advice to patent owners
is "try not to get into one of these proceedings!"
Interesting as these presentations were, I think many in the
audience more curious about why Finnegan has chosen to move its
Brussels office to London (right) now. Is it to be closer
to clients? Is it more about being well-positioned for the
pharmaceutical branch of the UPC central division when it
launches? Will the firm compete directly for UK and European
work with solicitors and/or patent attorneys? If so, how will
that affect its relationships with London-based firms (many of
whom were represented at the opening yesterday)? Will it open
more offices in Europe (Paris and Munich are the most likely
locations)? Above all, will it fare better than other US-based
firms that have entered the UK market?
The
UK practitioners looking nervously around the room would not
have got many answers to these questions – though
managing partner James Monroe (left) did note in his opening
remarks that "it’s a good time to be a patent
lawyer in general" thanks to ever more complex and convoluted
laws. The firm says it is hiring to boost its London team
(which consists of three fee earners, according to its
website), so its intentions should become clearer soon.
With US rival Quinn Emanuel also making an impact on IP work
in Europe (though not yet in the UK), European practitioners
will be closely watching further developments. The only thing
you could safely say after last night is that ‑ with
canapés including fish and chips,
shepherd’s pie, toad-in-the-hole, scones and
strawberries ‑ Finnegan was doing everything it could to
make its British guests feel at home.