Mayer Brown is pleased to announce the continued expansion of its Intellectual Property and Technology, Media and Telecommunications (IP & TMT) practice with the addition of several lawyers in its Hong Kong and Beijing offices.
Partner Gary Hnath, a leading authority in Section 337 litigation, is now resident in Beijing as well as Washington DC. Focusing on intellectual property litigation and counselling, including disputes involving patent, trademark and copyright infringement and trade secrets, Mr. Hnath has handled numerous US court cases (both district court cases and Federal Circuit appeals) and over 45 investigations at the US International Trade Commission (ITC) under Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930, one of the principal forums for litigating intellectual property disputes involving imported articles. Mr. Hnath has successfully represented both patent holders and companies accused of infringement in cases involving a variety of technologies, including over 30 cases, many of them high profile, for Chinese clients, and was lead counsel to the first company in China to win a Section 337 case after trial at the ITC.
The firm has also appointed Zhao Chunchun as head of Mayer Brown (Beijing) Intellectual Property Agency Co., Ltd., where she will focus on trademark registration and dispute resolution in China. Experienced in trademark and copyright matters, Ms. Zhao was previously a senior lawyer at Spruson & Ferguson Intellectual Property Agency (Beijing) Co., Ltd and had worked at the China Trade Mark Office.
In Hong Kong, Mayer Brown has added lawyer Joanna Hui to the Intellectual Property and Brand Management team, which helps clients protect, preserve, enforce and monetize their trademark assets. An IP litigator is joining in October and the firm is also hiring more tech lawyers. The firm expects further strategic hires in the next few months, as well as internal promotions which will be announced in due course.
"I am delighted to welcome Gary and the new lawyers to our growing IP & TMT practice in Asia, which is evolving to serve the fast-changing needs of our clients," said Gabriela Kennedy, the head of the Asia IP & TMT practice and one of the most highly regarded IP & TMT lawyers in Asia. "Gary's move to be closer to our clients in the region will further strengthen our cross-border IP work between Asia and the US."
Mayer Brown's IP & TMT practice is the benchmark for high-profile technology matters, including trademark and copyright infringement, transactional and brand management matters, as well as cutting-edge trademark, copyright and patent litigation and IP arbitrations in Asia. In addition to intellectual property, the IP & TMT practice has a particular focus on data privacy, cybersecurity and technology transactions in response to our client's needs.
"The IP & TMT market remains strong,” added Ms. Kennedy. “Legal work in this area transcends borders and is becoming more complex with the increasing use of artificial intelligence and big data. With our wide range of capabilities and global platform, we are in the best position to represent clients in multi-jurisdictional and cross-practice matters."