About Me

I am one of the founding partners of Bird & Bird Germany. As a patent litigator, my practice focuses on patent law. For years now I have been active in all technical areas and advised on all manner of patent law issues, in particular patent litigation before civil courts and arbitration on complex licensing agreements.

I have particular expertise in advising on technically complex patent infringement cases with parallel litigation throughout Europe and the US, and with a strong antitrust component (FRAND). My clients come from all technical fields, especially the automotive, pharmaceutical and food industries, and include well-known companies such as Nestlé, Sanofi, Valeo, Acer and LG.

Some of my landmark cases are: the first FRAND judgment in Dusseldorf (2007); the first suspension due to FRAND in Mannheim (2015) and the first suspension of foreclosure due to FRAND in Karlsruhe (2016); the dispute between Sanofi and NovoNordisk over Sanofi's InsulinPens (2008); Sanofi's arbitration proceedings with Genentech that led up to the ECJ (2008 - 2018); Nestlé in the dispute over the Nespresso and Dolce Gusto coffee capsules (2011 - 2019); the proceedings between Valeo and Melco regarding start-stop generators (2009 - 2018); Envipco in the disputes with the DPG and Tomra regarding the 25-cent deposit logo (2014 - 2019).

I regularly give lectures on various topics in the field of intellectual property law, in particular on the following subjects: FRAND, Cross-Border, licences in arbitration proceedings, enforcements at trade fairs (e.g. at the IBA in Cancun and San Francisco, the LESI conference in Amsterdam and Copenhagen). I am also a frequent speaker at Cambridge's IP Summer Law School and co-author of a comment on the community trade mark.
Experience
  • Nestlé / Nespresso: Representing in several international patent and utility model infringement proceedings against coffee capsules manufacturers (Nespresso und Dolce Gusto) (4b O 9/16; I-2 U 32/17; X ZR 114/18).
  • Sanofi: Representation in a variety of infringement and arbitration proceedings, e.g. the dispute with NovoNordisk, Ypsomed and Eli Lilly over InsulinPens, the ECJ arbitration proceeding (C 567/14) with Genentech regarding patent licensing agreements and infringement proceedings in relation to various blockbuster products (Lovenox, Eloxatin, Plavix, Telfast, Clopidogrel, Arava, Lantus).
  • Valeo: Representation since 1998 in various patent infringement proceedings, including against Mitsubishi regarding start-stop generators (X ZR 99/11), against Pilkington regarding counter-sensors (4b O 140/07, I-2 U 26/08), against Federal-Mogul regarding windscreen wipers, against ZKW regarding headlights, since 2010 against various competitors regarding parking systems; advice on various license agreements.
  • Envipco: Representation in various patent infringement proceedings, including against DPG Deutsche Pfandsystem, Gerolsteiner, Netto and RAKO, regarding the DPG infrared security marking.
  • Acer: Representation in numerous patent infringement proceedings regarding standard essential patents, including against Quimonda (DRAM chips) (4a O 168/12), Ericsson (IEEE802 standard) (X ZR 96/14) and OneRed (6 U 55/16, 6 U 57/16, 6 U 58/16) regarding DVD technology.
  • Teleflex Medical: Representation in various patent and trademark infringement disputes and enforcements at fairs regarding laryngeal masks.
  • Hatch: Representation in patent infringement litigation concerning electric arc furnaces.
Education

Studied

  • Legal studies in Freiburg and Bonn
  • Legal clerkship in Hanover and Düsseldorf

Admissions

  • Admitted to the German bar in 1996
  • Partner since 1999
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Testimonials

'Felix Rödiger has featured in a number of FRAND firsts in Germany and is a smooth broker of litigation, arbitration and licensing agreements across Europe and the United States'

IAM Patent 1000 2021

'Felix Rödiger is a leading name in the German patent litigation market, with a highly respected practice focusing on complex parallel proceedings in the EU and US'

Who's Who Legal Patents 2021

Felix Rödiger is a pioneer in the telecoms sector who was the first to successfully raise a FRAND defence in a German infringement action: "Felix has the capability to act fast in infringement matters. He always has the relevant information and gives the best possible advice to solve the case as quickly as possible."

IAM Patent 1000 2020

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