Paul Harris
Partner
Paul is an Intellectual Property Partner with over 40 years’ experience in intellectual property matters. He has worked on both non-contentious and contentious matters relating to patents, covering a wide variety of technologies including complex chemical cases, electronics and mechanical patents. In addition, he has extensive experience in trade marks/passing off, copyright/designs and trade secrets. Paul has appeared at every level of courts in the UK (Patents/High Court, Court of Appeal and House of Lords), as well as before the Nordic-Baltic Regional Division of the UPC.
On the contentious side, he handled the successful defence of Black & Decker in an action brought by Electrolux, the outcome of which led to the Patents Court guidelines on experiments and expert’s reports being introduced. He was also involved in the erythropoietin litigation (Kirin Amgen) and stent litigation (Boston Scientific). Paul was the solicitor in the case of Icescape v Ice-World [2018] EWCA Civ 2219. More recently, Paul was instructed by Ensygnia IP: a matter that went to the Court of Appeal (Ensygnia IP v Shell [2024] EWCA Civ 1490. He was also successful in the Patents Court for Fujikura v Sterlite ([2025] EWHC 3181) and led the team in the unsuccessful appeal before the TBA at the EPO in the same matter (June 2026).
Paul is noted in trade mark matters (registered and unregistered), having successfully litigated the first case under the Trade Marks Act 1994 (Wagamama Ltd v City Centre Restaurants plc). He was involved in the extended passing off case: Fage v Chobani ([2014] EWCA Civ 5) and was the successful solicitor advocate in Wineapp Ltd v Johnson [2022] EWHC 620 (Ch).
He is also known for his confidential information practice and handled the Dyson v Strutt litigation, relating to misuse of confidential information, and the same litigation on important issues of costs. He also led the successful team in the First Conference v Bracchi case, which included executing an interlocutory search and seizure order against the defendant.
On the non-contentious side, Paul’s skill and experience in analysing and solving strategic IP matters is called upon by many international clients. This ranges from trade mark problems and licensing strategies to patent analysis and assessment. He has also been instrumental in the negotiation and preparation of international licensing arrangements for patents and trade marks and has been involved in many non-contentious dealings including corporate support by way of due diligence relating to the sale of businesses and the licensing of the IP, preparation of multi-national licensing and cross-licensing arrangements (including co-existence agreements), and most notably the £2 billion sale to Du Pont of ICI’s film business. Paul has also overseen programmes for the registration of trade marks in many overseas jurisdictions. He also deals with the copyright and design right field and has acted for a management buy-out team in relation to computer software and computer hardware.
Paul has lectured on both patents and trade marks, as well as confidential information. He is well-known domestically and internationally and has been invited to speak at international conferences as far afield as Bulgaria, Egypt, the UK and USA. He also taught trade mark law on the Intellectual Property Diploma Course at both Bristol University and subsequently University of Oxford for 26 years, stepping down in 2021. He has written many articles over the years on both patents and trade mark issues.