JUVE Comment

Following substantial changes to the team, the practice remains particularly active in litigation for life sciences clients. In national proceedings it is representing Pfizer in the landmark dispute over mRNA vaccine patents against Moderna, as well as Glenmark regarding Tecfidera. In addition to traditional pharmaceutical cases, the firm also enjoys a good reputation for proceedings over medical technology. A major success for the team around Gisbert Hohagen was its work for Silimed against Polytech alongside a team from Carpmaels & Ransford, which led to a rare arrest order against the opposing general manager – a case that new equity partner Michael Schneider is very familiar with from leading the entitlement action a few years ago.

Together with salary partner Philipp Neels he joined Taylor Wessing’s Munich team in mid-2026 from Eisenführ Speiser. In addition to the new hires from Eisenführ Speiser, the firm also bolstered its associate ranks. By appointing a partner from the healthcare and life sciences practice, who specialises in regulatory issues in the pharma and medical devices sector and works closely with the patent team, Taylor Wessing fills the gap left by an earlier partner departure. This appointment and the two partner hires mark first steps towards regrowth of the German patent practice after the departure of a substantial team in autumn 2025.

Alongside renowned senior partners Christian Lederer and Dietrich Kamlah, up-and-coming partners Anja Lunze and Jan Rektorschek left to establish their own practice. In one fell swoop, the Munich team thus lost not only two of its three most prominent partners but also its young litigation team, carefully cultivated over recent years. They took with them major life sciences clients such as Stada, Sandoz, and Hexal, as well as hi-tech clients such as Samsung, Nichia, and The Walt Disney Company. Despite the recent two partner hires, and the work of established partners Hohagen in Munich and Roland Küppers in Düsseldorf in a series of high-profile cases, such as for Oppo/One Plus, the effects of the loss in terms of renown, expertise and client work are still being felt, especially in SEP cases.

This is even more true for the UPC. The staff upheaval in the German practice came at a time when Taylor Wessing had established a strong position at the European court. While still maintaining a certain visibility at the UPC with high-profile cases for clients such as Accord, Fraunhofer Institut, and Ecovacs, the loss of other major UPC instructions to the spin-off, such as for Transsion and Dreame, is a major blow for Taylor Wessing’s German practice.

The well-integrated European team, which was the backbone of Taylor Wessing’s success at the UPC in 2024 and 2025, suffered another setback when the UK and Belgian-Dutch offices dropped out of the Schweizer Verein alliance. The European patent teams now exist in three strands: the UK team merged with US firm Winston & Strawn to form Winston Taylor, with the Belgian-Dutch team as franchisees of the new firm, and the continental teams remain in the Schweizer Verein. The German, French, and Austrian patent teams maintain links to Winston Taylor through a cooperation agreement. For now, the German practice continues to cooperate with the UK and Dutch teams as well as the French office, especially in UPC cases such as for Accord, American Wave Machines and Oppo. However, compared to a globally integrated firm like Hogan Lovells or Bird & Bird, this represents a relatively loose association.

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, Michael Schneider(“accurate, risk-aware, solution-oriented and reliable”, client; “experienced in mobile communications, medical technology and chip technology with extensive experience in cross-border patent disputes”, competitor)

Team

19 lawyers

Partner moves

Philipp Neels, Michael Schneider(both from Eisenführ Speiser)

Clients

Litigation: Glenmark against Biogen over Tecfidera/dimethylfumarate; Pfizer against Moderna and CureVac over mRNA vaccine patents/Comirnaty (partly settled 2025); Silimed against Polytech over silicone implants; Ecovacs against Pabst Licensing over household robotics; Exertis against Huawei over Wi-Fi 6 (settled 2025); OPPO/OnePlus against Innovative Sonic over 5G SEPs; OPPO/OnePlus against AsusTek over 5G SEPs.