Dr Robert Burrows > Bristows LLP > London, England > Lawyer Profile

Bristows LLP
100 VICTORIA EMBANKMENT
LONDON
EC4Y 0DH
England

Living Wage

Work Department

IP litigation

Position

Robert specialises in patent litigation. He has a PhD in molecular genetics and is particularly active for clients within the life sciences sector.

Many of the patent and SPC cases Robert has managed in recent years have required the coordination of parallel proceedings in the UK, EPO and other jurisdictions within Europe and elsewhere in the world. He therefore has in-depth knowledge of European litigation and, alongside appearing for clients in the High Court and Court of Appeal, has attended preliminary injunction and main action proceedings in multiple countries within Europe and overseen inspections of pharmaceutical manufacturing processes in India and Japan. Alongside the assessment of validity and infringement issues, his recent cases have included a damages enquiry, a reference to the Court of Justice of the European Union and the availability of Arrow declaratory relief.

Robert regularly advises clients on the Unitary Patent and the Unified Patent Court and, in more recent times, on the impact of Brexit.

He also advises on other IP rights and is one of a small number of lawyers who have acted in matters concerning plant variety rights. In addition to his litigation experience, Robert assists clients with freedom to operate opinions and due diligence on the intellectual property aspects of commercial transactions.

Robert is one of the founding editors of Bristows’ Biotech Review publication.

Career

Trained at Bristows; qualified in 2002; partner since 2011 to date

Education

Cuthbert Mayne School, Torquay; Leicester University (1993 BSc Hons Biological Sciences, 1997 PhD Genetics); College of Law, Chester (1999-00 CPE, LPC)

Leisure

Running, golf, cooking

Lawyer Rankings

London > Industry focus > Life sciences and healthcare

(Next Generation Partners)

Robert BurrowsBristows LLP

Bristows LLP houses a ‘truly exceptional‘ practice which assists clients with the full gamut of commercial, regulatory and IP-related issues. Liz Cohen co-leads the team with Richard Dickinson; Cohen has longstanding expertise in multi-jurisdictional litigation concerning patent revocations, and arbitrations, and Dickinson has in-depth knowledge of biochemistry, often assisting pharmaceutical companies with licensing and manufacturing agreements. Using her in-house experience in the medical device industry, Claire Smith has deep knowledge of licensing and commercial partnership agreements. Brian Cordery ‘goes above and beyond‘ when acting in contentious IP issues, including patent revocation and defence work, while Robert Burrows utilises his knowledge of molecular biology to advise clients on patent validity challenges. Matthew Warren is noted for his commercial expertise, often handling settlements and license agreements, and Marek Petecki regularly assists biopharma corporates and venture capital investors with transactional matters. Alex Denoon has ‘excellent regulatory knowledge‘, often advising disruptive technology clients on human tissue and genomics issues.

London > TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Intellectual property: patents (contentious and non-contentious)

Praised by clients as an ‘extremely experienced and very well-established’ team, Bristows LLP’s one-stop shop is notable for its capabilities in handling technology, life science and consumer products. The team is involved in cutting-edge work in SEP/FRAND cases, alongside pharmaceuticals, including important biologics and antibodies cases. On the transactional side, the team routinely handles IP deals including settlements, high value research collaboration and licensing deals, and IP aspects of corporate and JV transactions. Andrew Bowler and Myles Jelf jointly lead the patent litigation practice, the former is well-versed in coordinating global litigation and the latter is noted for his expertise in telecommunication and high tech matters. Matthew Warren leads the transactional side of the practice, his most notable work includes a landmark research collaboration and licence agreement between Oxford University Innovation and AstraZeneca. Claire Smith is another name to note on the transactional side. Liz Cohen’s strengths lie in the realm of life sciences, while James Boon is sought after by clients in the telecoms and high-tech sectors. Other patent litigation specialists include Gemma BarrettRichard Pinckney, Robert Burrows, Dominic Adair and Brian Cordery.