JUVE Comment

After a strong start at the UPC, the pan-European patent practice continues to attract a steady flow of new UPC instructions despite some staff changes, underscoring Simmons & Simmons’ long-standing ambitions in litigation here. A notable success was securing first-time instructions from Apple to act as an intervener in two telecommunications disputes. The firm also gained Honeywell as a new client in a case before the local division The Hague, helping to stabilise the depleted Dutch team.

The life sciences patent attorney team remains a pillar of strength, notably representing Genevant alongside Brinkhof in a major mRNA case against Moderna. Following recent departures, the firm’s work has shifted somewhat towards life sciences, with additional matters for Mediq and Sibionics concerning glucose-monitoring devices.

However, a series of significant departures marked a turbulent twelve months for Simmons & Simmons. A substantial team in Amsterdam led by Bas Berghuis van Woortman moved to competitor Taylor Wessing, while prominent UPC litigator Thomas Gniadek joined Hoffmann Eitle in December 2025. The UK team also suffered partner losses to competitors including Carpmaels & Ransford. Consequently, the European team is now considerably weakened at partner level and has lost ground to market leaders such as Bird & Bird and Hogan Lovells. Despite these setbacks, the pan-European patent litigation team maintains a solid foundation with established teams in Amsterdam, Munich, Milan, London, and Paris.

These departures may bring new opportunities, as Gniadek’s move takes the large NPE case for Network System Technologies to his new firm. With Apple as a new client, Simmons & Simmons can potentially focus more on implementers in mobile communications disputes. Strengthening collaboration between the remaining continental teams and the robust London office will be crucial for stabilising the firm’s market position and attracting lateral hires. However, measured against its ambitions to be a leading UPC firm, the team remains undersized and requires growth.

Strengths

UPC litigation concerning life sciences.

Recommended individuals

Stefania Bergia (“super professional lawyer”, competitor), Oscar Lamme

Team

19 lawyers, 6 patent attorneys, 3 dual qualified

Partner moves

Thomas Gniadek (to Hoffmann Eitle), Bas Berghuis van Woortman and Sebastian Versaevel (to Taylor Wessing)

Clients

Honeywell against Sovex Systems over mechanical engineering; Apple (as intervener) in Sun Patent Trust against Vivo over telecommunications; Apple (as intervener) in Ericsson against Asus over telecommunications; Genevant and Arbutus against Moderna over mRNA patents; Samsung Bioepis against Alexion over biosimilar drug Soliris for the treatment of rare blood diseases; Ascendis against BioMarin over C-type natriuretic peptides; Sibionics and Umedwings against Abbott over glucose-monitoring devices; Mediq against Abbott Diabetes Care over glucose-monitoring device; Oerlikon against Bhagat Textile, Himson Engineering (settled in 2025) over weaving machines; Danieli against Primetals over winder for steel coils; Kangni against Bode over mechanical engineering; BAG AG against Imusyn over biotech diagnostics (partly settled).