Background

Intellectual Property

4 Pump Court has a team of barristers with extensive experience in intellectual property disputes, with members of chambers regularly instructed in high-profile, complex cases.

Our barristers have experience across a wide range of intellectual property rights including copyright, trade marks and passing off, design rights, database rights, breach of confidence, trade secrets, patent licensing, and semiconductor topography rights.

4 Pump Court has received numerous IP/IT set of the year awards and is consistently ranked as the pre-eminent chambers for IT work. Members of chambers have an in-depth knowledge of the technologies and commercial considerations underlying disputes, as well as particular experience in licensing and franchising disputes involving the interaction between IP and contract law. Chambers’ expertise in both IT and IP disputes means that our members are uniquely placed to advise in relation to rights in emerging technologies, such as AI. Several members of chambers are contributors to the leading practitioner text on AI, Hervey & Lavy, The Law of Artificial Intelligence, (Sweet & Maxwell 2020; 2nd ed 2024).

Members of chambers are instructed by some of the world’s biggest technology, outsourcing and telecommunications companies, organisations and governments. We also regularly assist instructing solicitors with disputes from their SME clients. 4 Pump Court’s barristers have experience representing clients in IP disputes in the High Court (including IPEC) and the Court of Appeal as well as in international arbitration forums.

Examples of practice areas in which 4 Pump Court’s barristers advise and appear are:

Copyright

Members of our team have acted in a wide range of copyright disputes, with particular experience in software copyright and rights under the Software Directive.

Database Right

Our team has a wealth of experience of disputes involving database rights, including involvement in important litigation in the gaming and sporting industries.

Trademarks and Passing Off

4 Pump Court’s barristers have experience of a range of trade mark disputes, including issues that arise in domain name disputes and use of trade marks online in keywords and adwords.

Breach of Confidence / Privacy

Our barristers are regularly instructed on some of the largest breach of confidence/misuse of confidential information disputes across a wide range of industries. This includes disputes arising out of NDA breaches, team moves, conflicts of interest, hacking, phishing, and other theft and loss of information.

Patents (including SEPs and FRAND terms)

Members of our team are regularly instructed by global telecom companies, in relation to patent licensing disputes in the telecoms and technology sector.

  • FRAND litigation
  • Design rights
  • Comparative advertising
  • Malicious falsehood

For further information or assistance on our Intellectual Property practice please contact Senior Clerk, Stewart Gibbs, Practice Director, Billy Griffiths and Practice Manager, Mark Latham below.

Or call our main line:
T: +44 (0)20 7842 5555


Intellectual Property Clerks

Our Intellectual Property Barristers

Benjamin Pilling KC

Head of Chambers

Call 1997 | Silk 2015

Alex Charlton KC, FCIArb

Call 1983 | Silk 2008

Terence Bergin KC

Call 1985 | Silk 2016

Lynne McCafferty KC

Call 1997 | Silk 2018

Matthew Lavy KC

Call 2004 | Silk 2023

Simon Henderson

Call 1993

Kate Livesey

Call 2001

George Woods

Call 2003

Iain Munro

Call 2009

Transport

Gideon Shirazi

Call 2012

Quentin Tannock

Call 2016

Laura Wright

Call 2014

Rebecca Keating

Call Call 2017 (England), 2019 (Ireland)

Anna Hoffmann

Call 2018

Alex Taylor

Call 2019

Jacob Haddad

Call 2021

Katy Handley

Call 2021


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