JUVE Patent brings you the latest in-house patent market news and developments – from counsel moves, to interviews, to case law developments which impact technical industries.
In a corona-compliant video awards ceremony, JUVE named Knorr-Bremse as its In-house IP Team of the Year. A trophy was also awarded to an outstanding German IP Law Firm of the Year 2020.
Thyssenkrupp Elevator’s previous head of IP, Stephan Kohlhof, is moving to the same position at Swiss company Interroll. The European patent attorney now heads the IP department at Interroll, which manufactures conveyor belts for the transport of products.
Bernhard Frohwitter has left non-practising entity, IPCom. His successor as managing director is Pio Suh. The change in management is being accompanied by a comprehensive reorganisation of the company’s structure.
In 2020, Thyssenkrupp officially completed the spinoff of its elevator division. Now Thyssenkrupp Elevator AG is managing its own IP business. Nicolas Jacobi is responsible for patents, while Melanie Fischer-Endlich is responsible for soft IP.
As Xiaomi expands westwards, protecting its patents in Europe is essential to the company’s developing IP strategy. Liu Zhen, senior legal director and head of global litigation at Xiaomi, speaks to JUVE Patent about Xiaomi’s patent prosecution and litigation strategies, its approach to risk management, and why Xiaomi is still optimistic for a functioning UPC.
With G 3/19, the Enlarged Board of Appeal confirmed a decision that plants and animals derived from an ‘essentially biological process’ are not patentable. But this has caused controversy. Jörg Thomaier, head of IP at life sciences conglomerate Bayer, explained to JUVE Patent how the new regulation could curtail innovation in European agriculture.