JUVE Comment

Despite a year of significant changes in its lawyer team, Hoffmann Eitle has successfully launched into UPC litigation, both in terms of quantity and quality of cases. This surge in UPC work demonstrates how deeply embedded the firm’s patent attorneys are within their client base, enabling them to secure numerous new UPC instructions. This success is particularly evident in the life sciences sector, Hoffmann Eitle’s most renowned technical speciality. Highlights include the patent attorneys’ new work for Moderna, working alongside Freshfields lawyers in an mRNA dispute at the local division The Hague, and Carla Roth’s representation of Qiagen against bioMérieux, collaborating with Hogan Lovells. Until early 2025, the firm’s patent attorneys were also involved in two of the largest UPC battles to date, for Dexcom over glucose-monitoring patents and Ericsson over mobile communications, both of which have since settled.

Hoffmann Eitle now predominantly acts on behalf of its clients in UPC cases with mixed teams. This approach is evident in cases such as those for Eyesmatch concerning gaze correction technology and Zapp regarding metal foils for OLED displays. Notably, most of the firm’s current UPC cases lie outside its traditional life sciences stronghold. The firm has yet to fully realise its potential in this sector, as the life sciences industry has been slow to embrace the new court.

The positive developments on the client side were juxtaposed with a turbulent year in terms of headcount. The year began with the addition of a pharma-litigation-savvy team led by Gregor König joining the Düsseldorf office. However, this was followed by the departure of its most prominent UPC litigator, Niels Hölder, at the end of the year, and a junior partner to rival Carpmaels & Ransford in mid-2025, which saw the representation of Sanofi and Regeneron on the lawyer side move with them. Nevertheless, patent attorney König remains active for Sanofi.

On the lawyer side, Hoffmann Eitle swiftly countered these departures by hiring experienced litigator Thomas Gniadek. He brings expertise in mobile communications and network systems technology, along with a prominent UPC client who has sued various implementers before the European court. His arrival in November 2025 offers the firm an opportunity to move beyond its long-standing perception as a purely life sciences firm. The potential of its patent attorney practice in electronics and mobile communications has already led to instructions from Asian implementers such as Asus and TCL. This, combined with strong ties to Japanese companies increasingly using the UPC, positions Hoffmann Eitle to become a broader challenger in the market. If the restructuring succeeds and the firm leverages its mixed teams even more effectively, market leaders like Bardehle Pagenberg and Bird & Bird will need to closely monitor Hoffmann Eitle’s development.

Strengths

Pharma and medical devices disputes. Smooth mixed approach featuring lawyers and patent attorneys.

Recommended individuals

Thorsten Bausch (“excellent, experienced life sciences attorney”, competitor), Gregor König (“always straight to the point”, competitor), Carla Roth (“very knowledgeable in life sciences and good presence in oral hearings”, competitor)

Team

9 lawyers, 99 patent attorneys

Partner moves

Thomas Gniadek (from Simmons & Simmons), Niels Hölder, Mike Gruber (both to Carpmaels & Ransford)

Clients

Sanofi-Aventis and Regeneron against Amgen over cholesterol-lowering drug evolocumab/Praluent; Moderna against Genevant/Arbutus over mRNA patents; Enanta against Pfizer over COVID-19 antiviral; Qiagen Sciences against bioMérieux over test kits for latent tuberculosis; TCL against Philips over voice cooding and 5G patents; Asus against Wilus Institute of Standards and Technology over wi-fi 6 technology; Seiko Epson against Dolby over audio coding (settled 2025); Eyesmatch against Samsung and Microsoft (settled) over gaze correction technology; Tridonic against Inventronics over LEDs; Zapp against Dai Nippon Printing over metal foils for the production of OLED displays; Sunstar against Cerarcon over foam sealing technology; UPM-Kymmene against Virdia over mechanical engineering.