Who are WP Thompson
Our Profile
The firm is a specialist IP prosecution and litigation firm. Established in 1873, we are proud of our heritage. We are a full-service European IP firm, with our primary offices in London, the financial and legal centre of Europe, Liverpool, in the commercial and industrial heartland of the UK, and Cardiff, the capital of Wales and near the home of the UKIPO. We have also established an expanding regional presence serving the Home Counties and the North West of England.
With a strong direct client base in Europe and a wide range of expertise in our team, we offer the highest standard of advice and assistance to our clients. Our collaborative approach means that we work closely with our clients, getting to know their businesses and technologies so we can advise them from a position of knowledge and experience.
We also have a substantial number of clients overseas, and a commensurate network of professional relationships in every functioning IP jurisdiction worldwide. We believe that our experience in meeting the day to day needs of our domestic clients provides the best possible background for understanding the issues faced by our overseas clients. This means we are able to advise on European prosecution and enforcement issues with a strong appreciation of their commercial priorities.
Our expertise covers an extensive range of technologies, from electronic engineering and mechanical sciences, through to chemistry and biotechnology, and our team includes specialists in trade mark prosecution and enforcement. Litigation specialists also form an integral part of our team of professionals, meaning our advice is based upon a balanced foundation of commercial, technological and legal awareness.
Honours & Testimonials
What do we do?
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Attorneys, technical assistants and managers
What's happening in IP
See all news15.02.2024
The EPO is due to increase its fees on 1st April, 2024. There are some large increases planned in relation to renewal fees, particularly the third- and fourth-year renewal fees that are to increase by approximately 30%.
Full story29.01.2024
High growth businesses, despite experiencing rapid expansion in terms of revenue, profits, and market capitalization, often possess few tangible assets. However, they frequently own intangible assets, such as goodwill, brands, digital assets, intellectual property (IP), and know-how.
To continue to grow, these high growth businesses must consider ways to finance their expansion. Unlike tangible assets, it is difficult to value these intangible assets because they have no physical shape or form. The question is, how do these ‘tangible asset poor’ businesses raise funding via traditional methods such as bank loans?
Full story23.01.2024
On 15 January 2024 the validation agreement between the European Patent Organisation (EPO) and Georgia entered into force. Georgia now joins the four other non-EPO member states Morocco, Republic of Moldova, Tunisia, and Cambodia to become one of the “Validation States” of the EPO.
With the current agreement’s entry into force and the extension agreement with Bosnia and Herzegovina, the number of countries for which patent protection can be obtained on the basis of a single European patent application rises to 45. Applicants can now effectively obtain patent protection in Georgia using the same procedure before the EPO as for obtaining national patents in the 39 member states.
Full story29.12.2023
Artificial Intelligence
In a long-running dispute centred around whether DABUS, an Artificial Intelligence(AI)-based creativity machine, can be named as an inventor of two GB patents, the UK Supreme Court finally issued the long-awaited decision. Dr Stephen Thaler, the creator and owner of DABUS has ultimately failed in his landmark bid to register two GB patent applications protecting inventions created by DABUS, specifically naming the machine as inventor. The Supreme Court has ruled that while AI machines may have the ability to generate work, these machines are not inventors within the meaning of the 1977 Act.
Full story
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