Ones to Watch UK 2025: Edmund Eustace

Every year, JUVE Patent carries out extensive research in the UK patent market, culminating in the publication of the UK patent ranking. Our latest research highlighted Edmund Eustace, a barrister from 8 New Square as one of the current ‘Ones to Watch’ in the UK patent market.

Edmund Eustace’s route to SEP litigation had been mapped out for several years. While his success as a junior barrister at 8 New Square might not have been predictable a decade ago, his future in mobile communications patents began taking shape during his time at London patent attorney firm Kilburn & Strode.

At Kilburn & Strode, Eustace (32) spent almost two years as a trainee patent attorney specialising in telecommunications, electronics, and materials, as well as medical and mechanical devices. His work from 2016 to 2018 centred primarily on patent prosecution rather than litigation. Prior to this, he completed a Master of Engineering and General Engineering at the University of Cambridge.

“I very much enjoyed the case of Lenovo against Ericsson although the outcome in the Court of Appeal was not what we hoped. One of the enjoyable aspects of FRAND law is that it is moving extremely fast on a national and international level. The whole interim licence issue arose within one year,” Eustace says. “And there is more to come as many FRAND issues are still up in the air.”

Holding one’s own

In 2018, Eustace began studying law at BPP University Law School in London, which led him to 8 New Square. He started there as a pupil barrister in October 2019 and gained admission as a barrister one year later. Recently, the UK patent community has noted his growing presence in the market. “Edmund is a very talented young barrister,” says a UK solicitor.

It is no mean feat for junior barristers to rise to the top at 8 New Square, the leading set for patent litigation. The chambers house many prominent names such as Daniel Alexander, Isabel Jamal, and Andrew Lykiardopoulos to name but a few. However, the many high-profile cases handled by senior KCs at 8 New Square provide opportunities for junior barristers to prove themselves.

Eustace has done just that in several headline-making SEP disputes, including InterDigital vs Lenovo and Lenovo vs Ericsson. Both cases, where he represented SEP holders InterDigital and Ericsson respectively, set legal precedents — the former regarding FRAND licence rate calculations and the latter concerning interim licences.

From prosecution to litigation

During his time at Kilburn & Strode, Eustace realised that although he enjoyed working on patent prosecution, he would prefer to work on patent litigation. He decided to pursue a career as a barrister. “I particularly like the advocacy, to design the arguments and how to present them to judges, which forms a greater part of a barrister’s job. As a litigator, I also get to deal with a greater variety of patents and legal arguments. The patents that reach litigation are also usually of commercial importance, making the work significant to the client. ” says Eustace.

Multiple FRAND cases kept Eustace busy in 2024 and put him at the heart of UK patent court developments in SEP disputes. Most cases have now settled, as has his client R2 in the semiconductor dispute he handled against Intel. But the next big SEP case is already on the horizon, namely for ZTE against Samsung.

Looking to the future

As is typical in UK patent litigation, Eustace does not work alone on such cases, but rather alongside other barristers and KCs. His practice extends beyond SEP and FRAND cases — he regularly represents pharmaceutical company Novartis in disputes with generic drug manufacturers, for example.

A recent highlight was the Verifi vs Cloud Cycle dispute at the IPEC, where his client Verifi alleged patent infringement regarding monitoring systems for concrete mixing trucks. While his Cambridge engineering degree provides a good technical foundation, such cases demand the mental agility and advocacy skills characteristic of patent barristers.

These skills will also be put to the test in his next big case, which points to a new future. In July, the UK Supreme Court will hear the Emotional Perception AI case. The dispute centers on a patent application by Eustace’s client Emotional Perception AI for a system that recommends data files. At its core, it concerns the patentability of AI.