The Patent 1000 focuses exclusively on patent practice and has firmly established itself as the definitive 'go-to' resource for those seeking world-class legal patent expertise.
Silver - Individuals: infringement
Wildanger is an undisputed leader in the German patent litigation landscape. With 15 highly specialised and accomplished patent practitioners, the outfit has deep expertise and an enviable success rate, especially in the rancorous SEP space. Peter-Michael Weisse is recognised by clients and peers alike as “one of the absolute litigation leaders in Germany. He is an outstanding representative and is extremely experienced in patent litigation. His advice in these complex proceedings is excellent. He has a very good understanding of how to structure a licensing campaign and lead it to success. He and the firm’s outstanding performance guarantees nothing less than absolute satisfaction. Wildanger’s knowledge of the court system, ability to provide strategic guidance and tireless work ethic are unmatched.” Wolf Graf von Schwerin has practised law for over 35 years. With wide-ranging litigation experience across intellectual property, he is unanimously hailed as one of Germany’s leading lights where patent disputes are concerned. Leading telecoms litigation specialist Alexander Reetz keeps the patent and anti-trust dimensions of his cases perpetually in his sights. He and Weisse join up to support Bell Northern Research in a mobile phone-related infringement litigation. Another active litigation is in the household appliance field, while a third sees him taking on Pokémon Go and Quinn Emanuel for Niantic Inc in an infringement dispute related to cloud computing technology. Eva Geschke has 23 years’ experience and a near-encyclopaedic knowledge of German patent case law. She is especially noted for her skilled and tenacious support of German SMEs. She is technically proficient and capable across pharmaceuticals and telecommunications. The immensely experienced Roland Kehrwald has been at the firm for over three decades. A go-to for names in all major technical areas, Kehrwald is a fearsome presence in court, known for his tenacious, no-stone-unturned approach to litigation. IP all-rounder Jörg Schmidt represents clients with patents in mechanical and electrical engineering, telecoms and chemistry. He is known for his pragmatic approach and comprehensive knowledge of court procedure, and some of his recent matters include a medical device client involved in numerous infringement and opposition proceedings and a global juggernaut in the SEP telecoms space. “Ole Dirks is humble, nice and easy to work with. He is very communicative, analytically razor sharp, stress resistant and has extraordinary processing capacity. A natural teacher, he simplifies complex legal problems and explains things clearly. He has also been able to quickly understand rather complex technical matters, which he can convert into relevant questions and conclusions. This was very useful when finding technical work-around solutions to avoid patent infringement. Overall, he contributed a lot to the successful resolution of the litigation.” “Jasper Meyer zu Riemsloh is fantastic. Not only is he extremely prepared and well spoken, but he is always business minded. Jasper is technically astute, a fantastic writer and orator and a strong organiser. He is an excellent attorney and counsel in all dimensions.” With 20 years’ experience, Soenke Fock has built up significant expertise in standard-essential patent litigation and FRAND licensing. One matter in this field that Fock, Meyer zu Riemsloh, Weisse, Geschke, Reetz and Dirks are all involved in is for Sharp Corp against Oppo. Also, alongside Weisse, Fock supported Ocado Innovation in a four-utility-model dispute against AutoStore – a litigation known in the press as the ‘robot wars’. Fock’s other ongoing infringement proceedings involve packaging and medical device patents.
Alexander Reetz has been practicing intellectual property law since his admission to the bar in 2008. His practice focuses on litigation in infringement and validity proceedings in the field of technical IP rights (patents and utility models) and the coordination of litigation campaigns for the enforcement of larger IP portfolios as well as the defence against them.
Since his admission to the bar, Dr Reetz has, inter alia, successfully represented leading companies from the telecommunications sector in a large number of patent disputes in court, both on the asset and liability side. He has extensive background knowledge and many years of experience in disputes of this kind, which are usually fought out simultaneously in various jurisdictions and often – in the case of the assertion of so-called standard-essential patents – also have an antitrust dimension.
JUVE German Commercial Law Firms Handbook (2022) lists Dr Reetz as often recommended (with competitors describing his work as "first-rate" and him as a "an excellent addition to the firm” and a "super capable lawyer", producing "strong briefs"). He has been recognised as a Patent Star (2019-2022) and IP Star by Managing Intellectual Property IP Stars (2021-2022) and is listed as a leading professional in IAM Patent 1000 (2020-2022). WirtschafsWoche (2021) lists Dr Reetz as one of the "most renowned patent litigators" in Germany, and he has been recommended by Handelsblatt/Best Lawyers as a recommended intellectual property lawyer for several years (2015-2022).
Dr Reetz studied law in Cologne, Aberdeen (United Kingdom) and Stellenbosch (South Africa). Subsequently, Dr Reetz obtained an LLM in IP from the University of Aberdeen (2007). Dr Reetz – until joining Wildanger as a partner in 2019 – worked for more than 10 years as patent litigator (since 2016 as counsel) in a major international law firm in Düsseldorf.
Dr Reetz is a member of the German Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property and the German National Group of the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property.
Wildanger Kehrwald Graf von Schwerin & Partners mbB is one of the oldest and most prominent German IP litigation firms in Germany and can rely on decades of experience. Wildanger has an outstanding position in the field of patent litigation and is well known for its drive and extraordinarily high standards. Wildanger has 13 truly specialised attorneys in IP litigation – among them nine partners. The firm’s international and national clients always receive the same level of dedication and individual attention.
Wildanger has a remarkable and most successful track record in SEP enforcement and licensing, as well as in handling any sort of IP litigation across industries at any level of complexity.
The firm was already focused on IP law when it was taken over in 1967 by Günther Wildanger, one of Germany’s best-known patent litigation attorneys. This take-over played a decisive role in establishing Düsseldorf as a leading jurisdiction for patent and utility model litigation. A very high number of leading German decisions in the field of IP law, in particular patent law, involved cases handled by Wildanger.
All partners have set themselves apart in their own personal ways through their outstanding work, expertise and experience. They hold themselves to extremely high standards, making the firm the first choice for IP litigation and advice among national and international clients of any size. The close-knit team of internationally experienced attorneys works closely together, sharing their knowledge and expertise – with effective results. The firm’s team is freely scalable to also handle large and complex litigation.
Services
The firm's services encompass:
- patents and utility models:
- infringement proceedings;
- nullity and opposition proceedings;
- freedom-to-operate analyses;
- collecting evidence;
- inspection proceedings;
- SEPs and FRAND;
- disputes on inventor’s rights;
- licence agreements;
- research and development contracts; and
- transfer of intellectual property;
- employee inventions:
- assignments;
- remuneration;
- incentive systems;
- university inventions; and
- in-house trainings.
- trademarks:
- enforcement and exploitation of trademarks;
- company names and indications of geographical origin;
- representation in infringement and cancellation proceedings;
- border seizures;
- preservation of evidence orders; and
- licensing;
- designs:
- infringement proceedings;
- revocation and deletion proceedings;
- border seizures;
- preservation of evidence; and
- licensing;
- unfair competition law:
- passing off;
- reputation exploitation;
- reputation damage and degradation;
- unfair advertising; and
- preliminary injunctions; and
- trade secret protection:
- infringement proceedings; and
- protective measures.
Clients
Wildanger’s national and international clients come from a wide range of industries, among them global players, small and medium-sized enterprises and start-up companies. Wildanger serves companies in new technology fields, such as biochemistry, software, information technology, semiconductor technology and telecoms, as well as in classic areas, including pharmaceuticals, chemicals, engineering, automotive, medical technologies, consumables, electronics and electrical engineering.
Recommendations
Our accolades and recommendations include:
- JUVE German Commercial Law Firms frequently lists Wildanger as top-tier law firm for patent litigation in Germany.
- JUVE Awards 2021 recognised Wildanger as Law Firm of the Year Patents.
- JUVE German Commercial Law Firms (2021) lists Eva Geschke, Roland Kehrwald and Peter-Michael Weisse among the top senior advisers in patent litigation in Germany.
- Chambers Europe 2021 writes about the firm: “Clients regard the team as ‘one of the best patent litigation teams in Germany’.”
- IAM Global Leaders recommends two Wildanger partners from Germany (Wolf Graf von Schwerin and Mr Weisse), while IAM Patent 1000 list six Wildanger individuals.
- Managing Intellectual Property’s IP Stars lists Wildanger as a Ranked Firm 2021 and recognises four partners as Patent Stars 2021 and one partner as IP Star 2021.
- Dr Kehrwald is one of only five lawyers inducted into The Legal 500’s Hall of Fame for patent litigation in Germany.
Languages
Our working languages include English, French and German.