Alan Harper

Partner, Walker Morris

Alan leads the intellectual property team at Walker Morris. He is a specialist intellectual property solicitor advising across the full spectrum of intellectual property matters.

Alan is a highly-experienced litigator and handles a lot of contentious work. He acts to enforce the intellectual property rights of various businesses in the Courts. Alan advises across the full ambit of intellectual property rights including patents, trade marks, copyright and designs. Alan also defends clients in relation to critical infringement claims which threaten their business. Due to his extensive experience in the sector, Alan is regularly instructed by leading brand owners to provide guidance on intellectual property matters. This work has included provides detailed assessments of infringement risks to major brands and businesses on new products which gives clients a vital assessment of the risk.

With regard to non-contentious matters, Alan regularly advises on intellectual property licensing including acting on behalf of a variety of clients for the licensing of high-profile brands. He also advises clients in relation to research and development agreements and the generation and capture of intellectual property. Alan also advises clients in relation to IP strategy and building a portfolio of rights. Alan also advises clients on the acquisition of intellectual property rights and he regularly "troubleshoots" intellectual property issues arising from M&A transactions.

Contributed to

3

New and emerging technology—protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights

Practice notes

This Practice Note focuses on the intellectual property (IP) aspects relating to the development of new and emerging technology, provides practical advice for parties engaging in collaborative working and the key considerations for protecting and enforcing their IP rights.

What IP assets a business may own and how best to protect them

Practice notes

This Practice Note explains the types of intellectual property (IP) rights which a business might own, including trade marks, designs, copyright, databases, and patented or patentable technology. It is an introductory guide which can assist the business when reviewing its IP portfolio, conducting an audit or deciding what IP protection to secure for its assets. See also Practice Notes: Protecting and enforcing intellectual property rights and Exploiting intellectual property rights.

Other work

Patent Court up in ‘arms’ over the inventive step and infringement by an equivalent (JCB v Manitou)

IP analysis: This case involved the assessment of four patents owned by JCB. JCB alleged that the patents had been infringed by Manitou who then counterclaimed for their revocation. The judgment contains a detailed analysis of the validity of the patents. The case also discusses the challenges involved in identifying the inventive step. His Honour Judge (HHJ) Hacon also considered the assessment of infringement, including a claim for infringement by an equivalent. Three of the patents (EP 065, EP 965 and GB 595) were invalidated for obviousness over the prior art. The fourth patent (EP 382) however was deemed to be valid and held to have been infringed by Manitou. Interestingly, much of the analysis regarding the inventive concept and infringement by an equivalent was addressed in a confidential annex. As a result, some of the rationale behind the judgment is not public. Written by Alan Harper, Intellectual Property partner at Walker Morris LLP.