Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer boosts Düsseldorf team with DLA partner

Philipp Cepl (52) began his career as a lawyer in 2003 at Bird & Bird, where he already focused on patent litigation. In mid-2012, he moved to the IP practice of A&O Shearman (then Allen & Overy), where he was promoted to counsel in 2015. With a further move to DLA, he was promoted to partner in October 2017.

Cepl specialises in patent litigation, advising clients across various technologies, life sciences and the automotive sector. At DLA, for example, he was involved in the extensive connected cars battle against Broadcom for automotive supplier Harman alongside then-practice head Markus Gamp.

Most recently, Cepl was involved in proceedings at the UPC, for example for Belkin in the dispute with Philips over wireless inductive charging of portable electronic devices. He also advised Wegochem alongside the lead Dutch DLA team in the case against Cathay.

Third partner in the team

At Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, Cepl joins a six-strong team that has grown steadily since the practice opened with the arrival of Ina vom Feld from Simmons & Simmons in 2020. Vom Feld is highly experienced in life sciences. In her role as practice head, vom Feld has since expanded the team further. In spring 2025, partner Florian Schmidt-Bogatzky joined the team from EIP. He boasts extensive experience in mobile phone litigation.

Philipp Cepl

With the latest addition of Cepl, the practice now has three partners. They all know each other from their previous time in Bird & Bird’s patent practice. Kai Liebrich, managing partner Germany at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, says “We continue to see significant growth opportunities in IP litigation in Germany. The addition of Philipp Cepl expands our offering to clients. We are delighted to welcome him to the firm.”

Following his departure, eight lawyers remain at DLA Piper’s German patent practice, two of them partners. Practice head is Munich-based partner Constanze Krenz, who regularly litigates in disputes — infringement as well as nullity proceedings and EPO oppositions — concerning a wide variety of technologies for clients such as Harman, HP, Nike, and Toyota. Most recently, she advised Dyson in a UPC dispute with Dreame.

In Cologne, life sciences partner Kokularajah Paheenthararajah is mainly active for pharma and medical technology clients, combining patent litigation with a focus on regulatory advice.