JUVE Comment

Taylor Wessing’s visible and renowned team ranks among the leading practices in Germany and Europe. The German team handles an impressive caseload for numerous high-profile international clients. The team is a primary choice in the market, particularly for life sciences clients involved in disputes over high-revenue drugs. A prime example is its representation of Pfizer against Moderna and Curevac concerning patents for mRNA vaccines underpinning the Comirnaty vaccine.

However, Taylor Wessing’s German team currently faces the departure of a substantial team. Alongside renowned senior partners Christian Lederer and Dietrich Kamlah, up-and-coming partners Anja Lunze and Jan Phillip Rektorschek are leaving to establish their own practice. This means the Munich team loses not only two of its three most prominent partners but also its young litigation team, carefully cultivated over recent years. At the time of writing, it remains unclear which clients will follow, though the departing partners led numerous high-profile cases last year. These included new clients such as Walt Disney, through which the practice demonstrated its position among the most respected teams in SEP matters. The team also maintains a broad client base of medium-sized companies, representing them in their most economically significant proceedings. A notable example is its representation of Wonderland Nurserygoods against Cybex regarding strollers.

The remaining team, led by renowned senior partner Gisbert Hohagen, will now leverage the firm’s well-established international cooperation with strong teams in other countries more intensively than before. This development had already gained momentum before the departures due to the firm’s numerous UPC proceedings.

European set-up

Taylor Wessing has established itself at the forefront of UPC litigation since the court’s inception. This success stems from close cooperation between its teams in Germany, the UK, Benelux and Vienna, which have collaborated effectively in pan-European disputes.

The firm recently filled a crucial gap in its network by recruiting an experienced patent litigation team led by Jules Fabre from Pinsent Mason in Paris. This strategic addition brings expertise in pan-European pharmaceutical proceedings and secures a presence at the UPC central division in Paris. Taylor Wessing can now also serve clients in French national proceedings within pan-European disputes.

Many UPC proceedings currently run parallel to cases in German national courts and/or other jurisdictions such as the Netherlands or the UK. The international team is ideally positioned for companies pursuing dual litigation strategies.

Taylor Wessing is gaining impressive experience representing pharmaceutical clients at the UPC, despite relatively few proceedings overall as this industry has already exhausted its crown jewels. Examples include representing Glenmark against Biogen over dimethylfumarate/Tecfidera, Zentiva against Sanofi regarding the use of cabazitaxel to treat tumours, and Pfizer against Moderna and CureVac concerning mRNA vaccine patents/Comirnaty. The firm’s large Europe-wide team can act before divisions where it lacks local offices, as demonstrated by its representation of Accord Healthcare against Novartis over nilotinib for treating rare cancers, with the Dutch team leading in close cooperation with German colleagues. The team is also a go-to choice for medical device manufacturers, representing Tandem against Roche over ambulatory drug infusion.

Taylor Wessing maintains a strong position in UPC telecommunications litigation, acting for Exertis against Huawei over wi-fi 6 (settled 2025) and Verifone against Nokia over 4G/LTE SEPs (settled 2025), alongside Walt Disney against InterDigital over SEPs and against Adeia regarding media streaming.

The firm is also involved in a dispute between Chinese companies Chint Astronergy Group and JA Solar Panels in the emerging solar panel sector. Working with the London team, the German practice represents American Wave Machines against White Water surf technology for water parks. Long-standing medium-sized clients such as Wonderland Nurserygoods now also entrust the practice with UPC proceedings. However, many of these cases were led by the five recently departed partners, which has impacted the firm’s strong start at the UPC.

Strengths

Litigation related to pharmaceuticals on the generics side as well as concerning medical devices and telecoms. Good contacts in China and Japan.

Recommended individuals

Christoph de Coster, Gisbert Hohagen, Roland Küppers,

Partner moves

Dietrich Kamlah, Christian Lederer, Anja Lunze, Jan Phillip Rektorschek, Thomas Pattloch (all founding own firm Pentarc)

Team

14 lawyers

Clients

Litigation: Pfizer against Moderna and CureVac over mRNA vaccine patents/Comirnaty; Abbott against Dexcom over portable glucose-monitoring devices (settled 2025); Stada against Bayer over rivaroxaban/Xarelto; Realme/Oppo against Ox/Longhorn IP over 5G patents (settled 2025); Walt Disney against InterDigital over SEPs; Walt Disney against Adeia over media streaming; Exertis against Huawei over wi-fi 6 (settled 2025). Glenmark against Novartis over MS drug fingolimod; Mylan/Viatris against Bayer over cancer drug sorafenib; Mylan/Viatris against Teva over multiple sclerosis drug Copaxone; Mylan/Viatris against Biogen over multiple sclerosis drug dimethylfumarate.