Powell Gilbert

UK IP litigation boutique Powell Gilbert has featured in some of the most legally and technically complex patent disputes in the English courts in recent years. This stable firm is highly recommended for patent disputes, especially in the life sciences and pharmaceutical sectors.

Patent Stars such as Zoë Butler, Penny Gilbert and Simon Ayrton lead patent dispute instructions in the firm. Other notable practitioners include Peter Damerell, Bethan Hopewell, Siddharth Kusumakar, Ari Laakkonen, Tim Whitfield, and Alex Wilson. 

2024/2025

"I have been working with Tom Oliver and Peter Damerell and they both are excellent professionals with a deep knowledge of IP law and a business-oriented attitude. I sure recommend them."

"Very good patent litigation firm – very skilled, strategic and friendly."

"In addition to their just simply being ahead of everyone else in the class, we prefer to work with PG on the basis of their diverse team and because they are fun and interesting people with a lot of character."

"Powell Gilbert are a pre-eminent patent litigation firm in the UK market. They appear in all of the biggest cases and when the stakes are highest. Their firm's ethos is perfect: they combine extraordinary hard work and aggressive litigation strategy with being incredibly lovely people."

"We know them very well and know they have the proper expertise. They are very expert and efficient with a deep knowledge of patent matters, very clear in their approach."

"Highly skilled, experienced, and pragmatic."

"Powell Gilbert has an excellent technical understanding and outstanding litigation skills in UK patent litigation matters. Powell Gilbert is responsive, has a very good strategic understanding and technical expertise. It also is experienced in participating in larger international teams."

"Powell Gilbert is one of the best patent litigation firms in London and has a depth of knowledge and expertise which is second to none."

Penny Gilbert

"She is just brilliant and always very friendly."

Siddharth Kusumakar

"He is likeable and very intelligent, yet he has patience with collaborators who may not move with the same intellectual pace."

"Very skilled and nice to work with."

Simon Ayrton

"Simon is one of the leading patent litigators in the UK. He combines deep subject-matter knowledge with a highly commercial and strategic approach. He has been consistently trusted by clients with the very largest patent litigation under way in London."

Alex Wilson

"Works on patent litigation and advice."

Peter Damerell

"He has excellent client skills and a highly analytical mind."

Zoe Butler

"Zoe is an exceptional IP lawyer and litigator who has a great scientific knowledge but also has great instincts as a litigator."

2023

"We appreciate that they provide a very responsive service with efficient, lean staffing."

"We appreciate their efficiency – they are precise but straight to the point."

"They are highly skilled and knowledgeable, both on the technology and the legal side of the litigation. We appreciate that they are highly communicative with client and offer reasonable rates. "

"We appreciate their responsiveness. They are user-friendly- they are able to communicate legal issues to non-specialist clients as well as gain respect of scientific clients with their ability to understand complex scientific concepts."

"They have great knowledge of patent IP and the specifics of UK law."

"The Powell Gilbert team are a joy to work with in what can be the extremely stressful process of litigation. They always worked collaboratively with the client and were always proactive in driving the litigation and in trying to find a way to promote settlement. They provided clear advice so that the client was able to make informed decisions throughout the litigation. Their choice of barristers for the case was extremely good and their preparation of the case for trial was so good the opposing client even congratulated them after the trial."

"We appreciate the high attention to detail, very honest feedback and outstanding legal expertise."

2022 client testimonials

"They have the depth of experience in patent litigation and the technical expertise."

"Very organised and responsive. Excellent at strategy. Superb preparation for trial."

"We used them because of their expertise and professionalism, and we wanted the best defence possible."

"Collectively the firm has built a juggernaut of top-level experience and skill. They are reasonably priced compared with big law."

Managing IP award 2022 reasons

UK Impact Case of the Year

Vestel v Access Advance (England & Wales Court of Appeal)

This was a judgment confirming that there is no such thing as a free-standing FRAND claim and therefore a claimant must have an underlying basis for its claim to engage the English court’s jurisdiction.

Illumina Cambridge v Latvia MGI Tech SIA & Ors (England & Wales High Court)

This was the first court judgment to examine the law on sufficiency following the UK Supreme Court’s 2020 decision in Regeneron.

European Cross-border Patent Litigation Team of the Year

For Illumina’s work: Bugge Valentin (Denmark), Hoyng Rokh Monegier (France), Clifford Chance (Spain), Homburger (Switzerland), Powell Gilbert (UK), Rospatt Osten Pross (Germany), Trevisan & Cuonzo (Italy) and Westerberg & Partners (Sweden).

The firms helped Illumina enforce its patent for a pioneering DNA sequencing technology in several European courts.

Patent case studies show the firm was involved in disputes in different technical fields, including consumer technology and biotechnology. Clients include Royalty Pharma Collection Trust, BioNTech, Philip Morris International, Illumina, Ocado Group, Access Advance, Biogen, and Edwards Lifesciences.

The firm promoted 2021 Rising Stars Tess Waldron and Joel Coles was promoted to the partnership in 2022.  The firm further strengthened its team between October 2021 and September 2022 with four new associates: James Bergus, who was previously an associate to the Honourable Justice Jonathan Beach in the Federal Court of Australia; Douglas Jayatilaka; Adam Mackinnon; and Theo Cooper. Of Counsel Richard Fawcett, Rajvinder Jagdev and Alex Borthwick are practitioners to watch.