Which are the most significant patents?

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Gardens, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2026

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

Which are the most significant patents?

We want to know which patents readers think have been the most important: send us your suggestions online, by email or on social media

Nominations can be in any technological field, and from any jurisdiction. Note that we are not necessarily looking for the most significant inventions, but for the most significant patents

Reasons for nomination could include:

  • The patent protected the sales of a particularly valuable product (such as a blockbuster drug).

  • The patent was widely licensed, enabling many different products and earning significant royalties.

  • The patent was successfully enforced in court and/or ADR (leading, for example, to remedies such as large damages).

  • The patent was widely cited and influential on later developments in the field.

You can nominate any number of patents, and they can be active or expired. Where possible, please provide a few sentences explaining why you have nominated each patent.

You can make nominations in the following ways:

We will make a final selection of the most significant patents from the nominations received, and will publish an analysis of each one in a future issue.



more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

Patrade has turned to experienced IP practitioner and business development leader Anders Isaksson to strengthen its commercial strategy and expand its reach to clients across Scandinavia
Cassie Hill, partner at Mishcon de Reya, discusses rebuilding client relationships after maternity leave and the pressures facing women at a pivotal stage of their career
Matthew Asbell discusses why empathy is important in law, being inspired by diverse workplaces and working on the latest, greatest large language model
The new partners add patent trial depth in high-value technology sectors including semiconductors, software, and cloud computing
From seller vetting and proprietary screening technology to brand collaboration and industry partnerships, Temu explains how its intellectual property enforcement programme combats infringement on its marketplace
A handful of US firms have quietly invested in European patent talent. Recent moves by Baker Botts and K&L Gates suggest that trend may be accelerating
Loke Khoon Tan and Stephanie Yip at Dentons explain what brand owners need to know ahead of January 1 2027, when updates to China’s Trade Mark Law come into force
New US bills signal that firms should work with clients to ensure they are complying with potential regulatory requirements
Octavio Espejo of Becerril, Coca & Becerril explains how sweeping patent reforms reshape filing strategies, prosecution, and divisional application practice
The UK Supreme Court’s decision in Tesla v Avanci enhances the UK's attractiveness for global FRAND battles, say lawyers at Simmons & Simmons
Gift this article