Powell Gilbert to open office in Düsseldorf with Vossius partner

Until now, Powell Gilbert’s UPC strategy has primarily focused on the Irish route. This route is risky while the ratification of the UPC Agreement in Ireland is still up in the air. A separate continental European office with German lawyers, however, closes the gap in the firm’s UPC strategy.

Andreas Kramer (46) began his career as a lawyer in 2009 at the law firm Siebeke Lange Wilbert, where he spent a year before moving to Krieger Mes Graf von der Groeben. The Düsseldorf IP boutique was already renowned in patent litigation at that time and was involved in extensive disputes for clients such as MPEG LA and IPCom.

In 2016, Kramer moved to the up-and-coming IP law firm Arnold Ruess, which had emerged as a spin-off from the patent team of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in 2010.

At Arnold Ruess, Kramer specialised in cases involving mobile communications technology.

Kramer played a leading role in the defence of the French mobile phone manufacturer Wiko against claims brought by Ericsson, Philips, Dolby, Fraunhofer and the NPE Intellectual Ventures. He took this client with him when he moved to mixed firm Vossius & Partner as a partner in spring 2018.

Extensive SEP experience

At Vossius & Partner, Kramer played a key role in building up a mixed team. He made a name for himself with extensive patent infringement proceedings, particularly in mobile communications, for example for TCL vs IPBridge and for Oppo. He represented the latter not only in the national dispute against VoiceAge, but also in part of the high-profile battle against Panasonic at the UPC over WCDMA and LET standards until the parties settled in 2024.

At the UPC, Kramer was regularly active in the alliance Vossius & Brinkhof UPC Litigators, including for Optoma against Dolby and most recently for ZTE against Samsung.

Kramer boasts experience in disputes across a broad technical spectrum. He acted in EPO oppositions for pharma clients such as CRISPR Therapeutics and represented Max Planck Gesellschaft alongside Vossius’ patent attorneys.

The new Düsseldorf office is set to open in September. Joining Kramer is lawyer and counsel Hannes Obex as well as patent attorney Andreas Ditler. All three are UPC representatives and have extensive experience in SEP litigation.

Kramer says, “UK firms have always been leading in the European patent market with their strong focus on litigation and I see a lot of possible synergies between my expertise and the setup of Powell Gilbert.”

Gap closed

Powell Gilbert was an early supporter of the UPC. Despite Brexit and the subsequent withdrawal of the UK from the project, the firm’s partners are involved in various UPC disputes, which they usually conduct with local advisors. In individual cases they are even active without partner law firms from other UPC countries, such as for City Glass and Glazing.

In addition, Powell Gilbert’s partners often coordinate major cases at the court, such as that of Edwards Lifesciences vs Meril Life Sciences regarding heart valves or AIM Sport vs Supponor regarding electronic perimeter advertising in stadiums. These are playing out at multiple UPC venues.

After Brexit, Powell Gilbert opted for the Irish route. The firm opened an office in Dublin, where 15 of its lawyers now have Irish and thus also UPC admission. With the move to open its own office in Düsseldorf with German lawyers, Powell Gilbert is now not only creating direct access to the UPC but also a toehold for national litigation in a key German patent location.

Partner Alex Wilson says, “Andreas is a renowned patent litigator, a great internationalist and therefore a very good fit with Powell Gilbert.”

Following the three departures, Vossius will have 70 patent attorneys and 13 lawyers remaining, including five lawyers and three patent attorneys in the Düsseldorf office. This office will continue to play an important role, including in cooperation with Brinkhof for UPC litigation.