Taylor Wessing bolsters German patent practice with Eisenführ Speiser hires

The two new partners will join Taylor Wessing on 1 June. The firm is thus underlining its commitment to restoring the renowned patent practice to its former strength following the spin-off of a large team in the autumn.

Michael Schneider (56) has more than 20 years of experience in patent litigation, particularly in mobile communications and the medical devices sector. He represented Neovasc Tiara against Edwards Lifescience in proceedings over a minimally-invasive heart-valve technology and Enovsys in a dispute with Deutsche Telekom over data security in mobile location technology. He also acted for Silimed in entitlement actions against Polytech over breast implants.

More recently he was part of the team advising Headwater Research in several UPC disputes against Samsung Electronics, Apple and Motorola as well as in national nullity suits against Lenovo. He also acts for Mala against Cisco Systems in national infringement and nullity proceedings and for Advanced Standard Communications in a series of proceedings, including a UPC case against Xiaomi over mobile phone patents.

He began his career in 2003 at mixed patent firm Meissner Bolte, where he joined the partner ranks after a few years. In April 2008, he joined Wragge & Co as part of the team that set up the Munich office for the Birmingham-based firm. The firm initially merged with Lawrence Graham in 2014 to form Wragge Lawrence Graham. Another merger followed in 2016, this time with Canadian firm Gowling to form Gowling WLG. In 2017, Schneider was one of several IP partners to leave Gowling for Pinsent Masons, which he then left in 2021 to move to Eisenführ Speiser.

Teamwork

Philipp Neels (51) joined Eisenführ Speiser from Ampersand in summer 2023. Prior to his move to Ampersand, between 2010 and 2018 he was a partner at Wallinger Ricker Schlotter Tostmann. He began his career in 2007 as an associate at Bird & Bird in Düsseldorf.

Neels brings experience in patent litigation for clients in the medical devices and telecommunications sector. He also works for various companies in life sciences and mechanical engineering. Examples of recent client work include Advanced Standard Communications, which he represents alongside Schneider in the UPC case against Xiaomi. He also works with Schneider for Mala. Furthermore, he is involved in an infringement case for Hoya Surgical Optics against Ophthalmo Pro, as well as for Koninklijke Philips against Yunding Information Technologies and UAB.

On the move

The two new hires, along with some recent recruitment at associate level, bring the headcount of Taylor Wessing’s  German patent practice to 19 lawyers, six of them partners. The law firm aims to restore the litigation practice to its former strength after a large team left in autumn last year to form the new boutique Pentarc.

After the move of Schneider and Neels, four lawyers with a strong focus on patent litigation will remain in the team at Eisenführ Speiser, with two more also acting in patent cases. They often work with the 57 patent attorneys. The mixed firm is active in a substantial number of UPC proceedings, such as for Philips against Belkin over wireless charging and AquaShield against Brita over valves. The lawyers frequently advise on national infringement proceedings such as for Siegfried against Zentiva and Hoya Surgical against Ophthalmo. The patent attorneys are often involved in litigation alongside lawyers of other law firms, such as in the case of Wilus against Asus.