Bobby Smithson > Appleyard Lees > Leeds, England > Lawyer Profile
Appleyard Lees Offices
1 EAST PARADE
LEEDS
LS1 2AD
England
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Bobby Smithson
Work Department
Patents
Position
Partner / Patent Attorney
Career
Bobby Smithson works closely with in-house patent departments of large companies both in the UK and overseas.
Bobby manages a diverse range of international patent portfolios. He assists their owners to identify new inventions, assess their patentability and draft and file resulting patent applications. Bobby also has handled many high-profile oppositions and appeals before the European Patent Office, possessing the specialist knowledge and unique skills required to win favourable outcomes for our clients, whether opposing or defending a patent.
Bobby has particular experience in polymers, coatings and healthcare apparatuses. His practice includes patent work related to product inventions, novel polymers, compositions comprising existing polymers, and new operating processes. He has also drafted and successfully prosecuted patents for various complex mechanical inventions including engines and gearboxes.
Lawyer Rankings
London > TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > PATMA: Trade mark attorneys
Specialist IP firm Appleyard Lees is particularly active in the computing, fashion, and FMCG sectors, and assists clients across the full range of trade mark-related mandates, including with licensing and commercialisation of existing rights. Bobby Smithson heads up the practice, and he is ably supported by Leeds-based Robert Cumming and Chris Hoole in Cambridge, both of whom are dual qualified as trade mark attorneys and solicitors. Cumming handles multi-jurisdictional disputes, while Hoole frequently works on global anti-counterfeiting campaigns.
London > TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > PATMA: Patent attorneys
Specialist IP firm Appleyard Lees is praised for its ‘highly experienced experts’, who are skilled in a range of industries, including life sciences, pharmaceuticals, electronics, software, chemistry, engineering, and physics. The firm counts emerging innovators and start-ups among its extensive client base, as well as larger international corporations. In Leeds, managing director Bobby Smithson now heads up the team, having taken over from previous Manchester-based practice head David Clark, who has substantial experience in patent drafting and opposition work regarding electronics, as well as representing clients in infringement proceedings. Barbara Fleck in Leeds spearheads the firm’s life sciences sector group, and she boasts ‘expert knowledge in the biotechnology IP space’ in particular. Howard Read retired in April 2024.