Meet the core UPC team

HLK has over 40 qualified European Patent Litigators (representatives before the UPC), expert European Patent Attorneys in every major technical discipline, and an in-house litigation team including Patent Attorney Litigators who are able to represent clients at the UPC.

Meet our core UPC team who are well placed to help our clients to navigate the complexities of the Unified Patent Court.

Matthew Howell, Partner

Matthew is a registered representative before the UPC and has direct experience of litigation at the UPC. He qualified as a UK Patent Attorney in 2007, as a European Patent Attorney in 2008, and as a Patent Attorney Litigator in 2014. Matthew specialises in the fields of electronics, computing (including software) and communications, and has undertaken work on behalf of a variety of major international companies operating in these fields, as well as SMEs and major universities. He has extensive experience of hearings before the Examining Divisions, Opposition Divisions and Boards of Appeal of the European Patent Office. As well as his patent drafting and prosecution work, Matthew has also handled contentious issues, helping clients to achieve positive results in a number of IP related disputes.

Email Matthew Howell.

Greg Ward, Partner

Greg is a registered representative before the UPC and has direct experience of litigation at the UPC. He is a Partner and Patent Attorney at HLK. He is recognised by both clients and colleagues as an expert in the fields of electronics, communications and machine learning. With experience both in private practice and as part of an in-house IP department, during a year-long secondment, Greg has a strong understanding of clients’ needs and regularly gives strategic advice on patent prosecution, portfolio management and litigation. In particular, Greg brings a deep level of technical background knowledge to his work in the drafting and prosecution of high value, standards essential patents (SEPs); his advice and opinions are highly regarded by those working in the field. Greg is dual qualified as a Chartered UK (2015) and European (2014) Patent Attorney. Greg is also a Patent Attorney Litigator (2020), certified to conduct intellectual property litigation in all relevant UK courts.

Email Greg Ward.

James Ward, Partner

James is a registered representative before the UPC and has direct experience of litigation at the UPC. James acts for clients in patent prosecution, opposition and advisory matters across a diverse range of technologies. James regularly attends oral proceedings at the EPO before the first-instance Examining and Opposition Divisions and before the Boards of Appeal. Opposition proceedings form a significant part of his practice, acting both for opponents and patentees. Technologies in which James has acted in opposition proceedings include 3D printers, automated industrial control, software authentication and security, refrigeration systems, weapons systems, razors, railway equipment, sensors for deepsea fishing gear, firefighter safety equipment, television program guides, television audience measurement systems, injection moulding machines, DVD technologies, fax and e-mail devices, telephone routing and recording systems, intravascular stents, clothing, coffee machines and steel mills. James qualified as a European and UK patent attorney in 2007 and as an Irish patent attorney in 2018. He is also a member of the German chamber of patent attorneys (Mitglied der Patentanwaltskammer) and holds a Diploma in European patent litigation from CEIPI at the University of Strasbourg.

Email James Ward.

Sandeep Basra, Partner

Sandeep is a Partner in the Chemistry and Life Sciences team at HLK. She advises clients across a broad spectrum of patent matters, from drafting and filing applications, through to European Opposition and Appeals to freedom-to-operate opinions. Sandeep also advises clients on IP matters in Germany including helping companies develop and implement protocols to comply with the Employee Inventors Act in Germany. Before entering the IP profession in 2007, Sandeep was a researcher for many years in the UK, US and Germany. Her research touched on many topics including organic, inorganic, organometallic and medical chemistry. With this background, Sandeep routinely handles a range of technical fields from pharmaceuticals and small molecule chemistry to petrochemicals, polymers and catalysts. Sandeep especially enjoys working as an extension of a R&D department to applying both her technical knowledge and legal expertise.

Email Sandeep Basra.

Jana Crewett, Partner

After graduating in Physics and Environmental Science and gaining research experience in the UK and in Germany in Semiconductor Physics and Optoelectronics, Jana qualified as a German Patent Attorney in 2007 and as a European Patent Attorney in 2009. She has worked for a variety of German and international IP firms and industry patent departments, advising clients on patent prosecution and opposition matters across a wide range of technologies, including mechanical engineering, optoelectronics, microscopy, medical devices, mobile telecommunication, and software. Jana also assists clients in freedom-to-operate, litigation and licensing matters, as well as providing strategic advice for patent portfolio management and product development in view of FTO considerations.

Email Jana Crewett.

Joe Lenthall, Partner

Joe is a registered representative before the UPC. He is a leading specialist in EPO opposition proceedings, especially high value, complex and multi-party proceedings in the Life Sciences & Healthcare fields. Joe has strong technical expertise in Chemistry and Life Sciences and, in particular, handles contentious work in the fields of small molecule and gene therapies, drug delivery formulations, diagnostics, FMCG and materials chemistry. Joe also has UK litigation experience and led the successful defence of a patent dispute in the English IP Enterprise court and the subsequent referral to the Court of Appeal. He qualified as a Chartered Patent Attorney in 2010 and a European Patent Attorney in 2011. Joe is also a Patent Attorney Litigator (2017), certified to conduct intellectual property litigation in all relevant UK courts.

Email Joe Lenthall.

Sanjeet Plaha, Partner

Sanjeet is a qualified specialist intellectual property solicitor and a partner in the legal, design and trade mark prosecution teams. She advises clients on contentious and non-contentious matters relating to all areas of the IPR Lifespan, including at the High Court, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court, as well as the UK Intellectual Property Office.

She works closely with clients, barristers and outside Counsel in relation to litigation and trade mark Registry matters in the UK, EU and further afield. An experienced litigator, her casework varies from technical patent disputes to unregistered design right infringement, complicated breach of confidence/trade secret issues and mediations. She has experience in several industries including patent actions in the agrochemical, fashion, aviation, and pharma/medical devices fields as well as dealing with the misuse of confidential information relating to pharmaceutical products.

Sanjeet was named as a Next Generation Partner in the 2023 Legal 500.

Email Sanjeet Plaha.

Jamie Rowlands, Partner

Jamie has over 20 years of experience advising on, protecting and enforcing clients’ valuable intellectual property rights, with a focus on patent litigation.

He has litigated regularly in the Intellectual Property and Enterprise Court (IPEC), High Court, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court and the European Patent Office. He also has significant experience in acting for clients in international arbitrations (ad-hoc and institutional). His litigation work covers a wide variety of sectors including consumer products, telecoms, software, medical devices, aviation, automotive, oil & gas and advanced manufacturing. Jamie also advises clients on UPC litigation strategy.

Jamie is consistently named as a Managing Intellectual Property Star (patents and trade marks) and as a leading individual in the World Trade Mark Review 1000 and IAM Patent 1000.

Email Jamie Rowlands.

If you have any questions on the UPC and UP system, please contact upc@hlk-ip.com.