Kather Augenstein Rechtsanwälte > Dusseldorf, Germany > Firm Profile

Kather Augenstein Rechtsanwälte Offices

Kather Augenstein Rechtsanwälte
BAHNSTRAßE 16
40212 DÃœSSELDORF
Germany
Visit website 49 211 5135 360 49 211 5135 3622

Kather Augenstein Rechtsanwälte > The Legal 500 Rankings

Intellectual property > Patent litigation: solicitors Tier 2

IP boutique Kather Augenstein Rechtsanwälte assists large German and international companies from the medical technology, automotive, retail, chemical and electronics sectors, among others. Managing partner Miriam Kiefer heads the practice and regularly coordinates cross-border disputes, which also represents a clear focus for Peter Kather. Clients from sectors such as telecommunications, medicine and automotive regularly turn to Christof Augenstein in patent infringement proceedings, while Christopher Weber counts competition proceedings as well as patent law among his areas of expertise. Another key contact is Sören Dahm, whose advice often entails trade mark and design-related issues.

Practice head(s):

Miriam Kiefer

Other key lawyers:

Sören Dahm; Peter Kather; Christof Augenstein; Christopher Weber; Benjamin Pesch

Testimonials

‘Technical strength and responsiveness.’

‘Christopher Weber is committed and competent.’

‘Christof Augenstein is a very respected personality.’

‘Kather Augenstein adapts flexibly to requirements and offers excellent and creative solutions in all areas. In addition, proceedings are usually extensive and concern a large number of intellectual property rights with only partially foreseeable scope, which is taken into account by the flexible organisation of the team.’

‘Kather Augenstein offers excellent, goal-oriented advice with regard to the client’s specific requirements and possible future legal actions.’

‘Peter Kather stands out in court due to his great experience and calm and convincing negotiation.’

‘Christof Augenstein is very client-oriented and proactive. Even in complex cases, he has a comprehensive overview of both the legal and technical aspects and argues convincingly and flexibly in court.’

‘Miriam Kiefer is an excellent lawyer who is highly recommended, especially in technically and legally complex patent proceedings.’

Key clients

Sigma-Aldrich

RHEFOR (Deutschland) GmbH

Volkswagen/Audi

BASF SE

Merck KGaA

Advanced Bionics/Sonova

Ericsson

Knorr-Bremse AG

HTC

Centripetal Networks Inc.

Coloplast

Work highlights

  • Representing Ericsson in litigation in Germany against Apple for infringement of standard essential patents (SEP) and implementation patents.
  • Representation of RHEFOR (Deutschland) GmbH in a series of lawsuits against Hilti AG due to the vindication of numerous patent families.
  • Represented Centripetal Networks Inc. against Cisco in a multinational patent dispute in the area of ​​packet-based network protection involving numerous patents.

Kather Augenstein Rechtsanwälte > Firm Profile

The Firm

Kather Augenstein was founded by five established IP specialists at the beginning of 2016 and by now consists of 12 lawyers, who combine their expertise and experience for you. All of our lawyers have many years of experience acting in major cases for significant clients. Our size means that we are much more flexible than many large law firms.

We relish the challenging cases. Our passion is to disentangle complex situations, to decipher apparently contradictory facts, and to get to the root of a problem. We delve into the matter and never give up. Our focus: patents, trademarks, design and unfair competition. When it comes to intellectual property rights, we are second to none – all of us are specialised in this field.

We are a focused and very powerful team with the experience and know-how of the largest law firms. We work closely together, are highly specialised, and combine our knowledge effectively to your advantage. Naturally, this includes issues of international reach as intellectual property does not stop at borders. We work seamlessly with similarly experienced law firms around the world and coordinate international legal disputes.

We are thus able to supervise major mandates with complex issues. In court litigation we do not only master the strategy, we will also bring our creativity and ideas fully to the fore, to get the best possible outcome for you.

We work exclusively in litigation, because we prefer contentious disputes. Contentious and complex proceedings require a special approach and organisation. We appreciate your concern that your interests may not be heard with sufficient care and, also, the stressful situation and heavy pressure that legal disputes entail. We are aware of the impact that a dispute over monopoly rights may have, especially if a ban on production is at stake. We also have extensive experience with arbitration. We are regularly nominated as arbitrators, and are thus familiar with the other side of the bench.

Areas of Practice

Patents

Patents and utility models are the focus of our work at Kather Augenstein. We have enforced intellectual property rights in all technical areas, notably telecommunications, automotive, pharmaceutical, medical technology, bio-technology, nano-technology, engineering, chemistry and many more.
One of our core competencies is to make complex technical issues readily understandable. Our profession faces the challenge of the Unified Patent Court, an entirely new system, without established legal principles or precedent. In conjunction with colleagues at foreign law firms, we have engaged with the subject, and delved into the new law and procedure from different national perspectives. Since legal judges will be even more dominant at the Unified Patent Court, our role as translators is also set to become even more important in the future. The partners of Kather Augenstein were accepted as being readily qualified to act as judges for the new Unified Patent Court; an expertise that will be much to your advantage.

Trademarks and designs

Given the global division of labour, the decisive factor in the success of a company in Europe no longer hinges solely on production costs. That is because every business is now in a position to access cost-effective manufacturing options outside of Europe. Strong brands and distinctive designs are becoming increasingly important for your success, and we will help you protect them, to ensure that you remain distinctive, and that customers recognise true quality and originality. Strong brands and designs will always be subject to envy, but fear not! With us, you are in safe hands.

Unfair competition

Are you troubled by a competitor publishing misleading advertising, disseminating facts constituting trade libel, or otherwise violating laws against unfair competition? We will help you get matters back on track.

Equally, if someone accuses you of unfair behaviour or breach of intellectual property rights, you’ve come to the right place. We will defend your rights against unjustified claims.

Litigation PR

Patent and trademark disputes always attract a lot of attention. With our experience, we ensure that our clients also make a good impression in the public eye. If necessary, we offer Litigation-PR in cooperation with a trusted service provider.

Nowadays only those who take account of all communicative developments will emerge successfully from legal disputes – not only in court, but also in the public perception.

Main Contacts

Department Name Email Telephone
Senior Partner Dr. Peter Kather kather@katheraugenstein.com + 49 211 5135 360
Partner Dr. Christof Augenstein augenstein@katheraugenstein.com + 49 211 5135 360
Managing Partner Miriam Kiefer LL.M. kiefer@katheraugenstein.com + 49 211 5135 360
Partner Christopher Weber weber@katheraugenstein.com + 49 211 5135 360
Partner Sören Dahm dahm@katheraugenstein.com + 49 211 5135 360

Staff Figures

Number of Lawyers : 13

Languages

German
English
French
Italian
Spanish

Memberships

AIPPI (Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property)
EPLAW
Union IP
German Association for the Protection of Industrial Property and Copyright Law (GRUR)
VPP
German-British Lawyers' Association
women in ip e.V.

Other

Managing Partner : Miriam Kiefer LL.M.