International Comparative Legal Guides Patents 2026 - UK
Written By
Partner
UK
I am fascinated by IP and the challenge of helping my clients protect, exploit and defend their IP rights to further their business objectives.
Partner
UK
I am a partner in Bird & Bird's London Intellectual Property Group. I have extensive experience of advising clients across a wide variety of industries on complex legal issues and strategic considerations relating to all IP rights. My particular expertise is in high value complex patent litigation relating to telecoms (including FRAND) and emerging new areas of connectivity affecting many sectors.
Associate
UK
I am an Associate in our Intellectual Property Group in London, with a particular focus on the life sciences, pharmaceutical and chemical sectors.
Related
Practices
Sectors
Trending Topics
Regions
Countries
Offices
Expert Analysis
The guide tackles the questions you're asking right now. How are UK courts approaching standard-essential patent disputes? What's the emerging consensus - or is uncertainty still the dominant theme?
William Warne explores these issues in "Reflecting on a Year of SEP Litigation in the UK: Consensus Emerging or Uncertainty Ahead?", analysing what the latest cases mean for your SEP strategy.
Access the chapter here.
Bird & Bird's UK Chapter
Our UK chapter, authored by Katharine Stephens (Contributing Editor) and Patrick Brown, breaks down the enforcement, validity and licensing issues you need to understand.
You'll find analysis of game-changing decisions like:
- AstraZeneca v Generics (dapagliflozin) – where patents and SPCs fell for lack of inventive step and insufficiency, with important implications for pharmaceutical IP strategy.
- Optis v Apple – where the Court of Appeal reset the FRAND royalty rate to $0.15 per device, a tenfold increase that signals a significant shift in valuation approaches.
Looking ahead, the Supreme Court's pending decision in Emotional Perception AI v Comptroller-General could reshape AI patentability. If you're innovating with artificial neural networks, this case matters to your IP protection strategy.
Access the chapter here.
This was first published in ICLG Patents 2026.
Latest insights
More Insights
ICLG – Technology Sourcing Laws and Regulations Sourcing AI Solutions 2025 Guide
2 minutes Nov 03 2025
China Cybersecurity and Data Protection: Monthly Update – October 2025 Issue
18 minutes Oct 31 2025
3 Key Takeaways from Australia’s Latest AI Copyright Law Reform Announcement
4 minutes Oct 30 2025