Meissner Bolte bolsters team with renowned lawyers in plant-variety protection
Munich IP boutique Würtenberger joins Meissner Bolte at the turn of the year with its three fee earners. These are the experienced trademark lawyer and name partner Gert Würtenberger (67) as well as Tanja Wittmann (51) and of counsel Karin Grau-Kuntz (56). The three lawyers also have a strong focus on plant-variety protection.
16 December 2021 by Mathieu Klos
Mixed IP firm Meissner Bolte once again strengthens its litigation team, based in Munich ©Andreas Anhalt
The merger with Würtenberger brings particular expertise in plant-variety protection. Gert Würtenberger and Karin Grau-Kuntz will join Meissner Bolte as of counsel, while Tanja Wittmann joins as senior associate.
The trio spun off from IP firm Wuesthoff & Wuesthoff in 2012. The team focuses on advice on trademark, design and competition law. This often includes litigation. Name partner Gert Würtenberger is well-known in plant variety protection law and is regularly active in infringement proceedings. Only a few firms in Germany have a focus in this field, and Würtenberger is one of them alongside Wuesthoff & Wuesthoff.
Gert Würtenberger has also been president of the German Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (GRUR) since 2014.
New focus on plant variety protection
Meissner Bolte is a mixed firm of patent attorneys and lawyers and is particularly known for its strong patent practice. This technical focus is now complemented by plant variety protection law, an area in which the firm was not previously active. Furthermore, the three new additions are a significant reinforcement for the soft IP team.
Gert Würtenberger
“Through the future cooperation with our colleagues from Würtenberger, we will gain further valuable expertise in important technological areas,” said Dr. Tobias Wuttke, managing partner at Meissner Bolte. In addition, the trio strengthens Meissner Bolte’s core business, “so the merger represents added value in every respect”.
In the approximately 80-strong team at Meissner Bolte, 10 lawyers will advise on trademark law from Germany in future, with 3 more working in its UK office in Hebden Bridge. The firm’s patent team is considerably larger with approximately 66 patent attorneys. Nine lawyers work in the patent litigation field for prominent clients like Deutsche Telekom, Commscope and Honeywell. The litigation team is based in Munich. The firm has eleven offices in Germany and one in the UK.
(Co-author: Christiane Schiffer)
