“Amita Haylock is standout – she’s responsive, commercial and extremely smart. She doesn’t shy away from taking ‘a view’ and always looks to provide actionable advice with the client’s particular needs in mind. She takes time to understand each client, and the services provided by her team very much reflects this. Very highly recommended. Really the go-to counsel in this space [TMT] in Asia.”The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2022)
Overview
Amita Haylock is a partner in Mayer Brown’s Asia IP & TMT group. Her practice focuses on all aspects of IP and TMT, competition and public law across a broad range of industries.
Amita also has substantial experience in representing applicants and respondents in high-profile judicial reviews involving various complex issues including those in the technology, media and telecommunication sectors.
In the arbitration context, Amita has worked on various cross-border arbitrations involving licensing, commercial, and competition, technology and intellectual property issues.
Amita has recently been named one of the most outstanding lawyers in Asia under the age of 40 by Asian Legal Business (ALB). She co-chairs the firm’s Women’s Network in Asia and is a strong advocate of pro bono work. Amita was the recipient of individual awards at the Law Society of Hong Kong Pro Bono and Community Service Awards in 2018, 2019 and 2020, in recognition of the number of hours contributed to pro-bono work in each of those years, of which a significant portion was spent handling an arbitration case for a well-known charity.
Amita is fluent in English, Malay, Hindi, Punjabi and Bahasa Indonesia.
Areas of Focus
Spoken Languages
- English
- Malay
- Hindi
- Punjabi
- Bahasa Indonesia
Experience
- Advising a global technology company delivering blockchain-based solutions on the licensing of its blockchain technology into mainland China.
- Advising a global technology company on various regulatory and licensing issues concerning the use of its app in the APAC region including new business models, IP licences, competition law and cybersecurity and data privacy issues.
- Advising on telecoms regulatory issues.
- Handling IP and IT due diligence across many industries including pharma, media, and technology.
- Advising a major sports clothing and footwear company on domain name strategies for .vn and dealing with online infringement.
- Acting for TVB in three high-profile judicial reviews stemming from decisions issued by the Communications Authority (CA), concerning public complaints made to CA alleging indirect advertisement and product placement during two programmes.
- Acting for a public listed manufacturer of chemicals for industrial use based in mainland China in a HKIAC-seated arbitration against a public listed US company. There are various aspects of IP, trade secrets and competition law involved in this cross-border dispute. This arbitration also concerns various US and mainland China chemical process-related patents and we advised on various aspects of infringement and claims in relation to these patents.
- Represented the Communications Authority (CA) in Appeal No 31 before the Telecommunications (Competition Provisions) Appeal Board, the Court of Appeal and the Court of Final Appeal. This was in relation to the CA’s conduct of an investigation into alleged anti-competitive conduct by Apple and certain mobile network operators. The investigation concerned the effects on competition among network operators of Apple's practice of supporting only selected network operators and configuring the iPhone 5 so that it would not connect to the networks of carriers that it does not support.
- Representing a well-known European sports agency in an arbitration involving one an English Premier League football team. The issues involved include IP and breach of contract.
- Representing a non-profit organisation on their campaign, handling cross-border enforcement matters (actions in four jurisdictions) and advising on unpaid royalties under the organisation's celebrity artwork licensing programme. This case was filed for arbitration with HKIAC, which we won, and did the advocacy for the hearing.
- Advising on the merits of the alleged patent and registered design infringement claims of mask holders in Hong Kong.
- Advising a five-star hotel on a copyright infringement dispute with a well-known British home décor designer.
- Advising an iconic sports brand on a dispute with a former licensee over the sale of grey goods by the licensee's factory in China by the factory's appointed liquidator. This complex case addressed cross-border bankruptcy and IP issues. It was vital to devise a strategy quickly that stopped the sale by auctioning our client's branded products by the factory's liquidators in China.
- Advising a supply chain manager on a trade mark dispute involving a well-known European toy company.
- Advising a developer on copyright infringement right issues in relation to the publication of a photograph.
- Assisting with extensive IP due diligence (including various patents) and an IP Opinion for a company applying to be listed on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong. We also assisted with replying to queries raised by the Stock Exchange and the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC).
- Representing a European technology company in various patent litigation matters in Hong Kong in relation to the infringement of their standard essential patents.
- Representing an American multinational technology company in a copyright infringement action in Hong Kong against a group of companies based in Hong Kong and mainland China.
- Advising a well-known tobacco manufacturer on various IP issues including infringement, brand protection, strategy, parallel importation, and Trade Descriptions Ordinance issues.
- Advising a IT company on breach of confidential information and copyright infringement by former employees of the company.
- Advising an Australian skin care company on trade mark infringement and passing off issues in Hong Kong.
- Advised a media industry association in Hong Kong in relation to setting up a new administrative process to achieve site blocking.
- Assisted a client in the entertainment industry in Hong Kong on a data breach.
- Advised a hotel on a data breach affecting its service provider, which resulted in the unauthorised access of hundreds of customers’ personal data.
- Advised a retailer group on phishing incidents and website-spoofing attacks carried out on the group’s businesses, including investigation into offending sites and coordinating with third parties on takedown attempts.
- Advising an insurance company on the provisions of the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinances and drafting related policies.
- Advised Communications Authority in relation to criminal investigations in the telecommunications sector on alleged unfair trade practices under the Trade Description Ordinance.
- Advising an American technology company on licensing of its standard essential patents in mainland China, with particular focus on Chinese anti-monopoly provisions governing technology and import.
- Successfully applying for trade mark revocations on behalf of a cult luxury jewellery brand.
- Advising an online ticket exchange company on a global project covering 24 jurisdictions in relation to regulations on primary ticketing.
- Advising a tobacco manufacturer on consumer protection issues arising out of import and sale of contraband cigarettes by Hong Kong traders.
- Advising an app-based car hailing company on public law issues.
- Acting for the government authority responsible for licensing and regulating the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in judicial review proceedings brought by a telecommunications licensee.
Events
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February 212023
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December 162020
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October 17 – 182019
News
Education
University of London, Bachelor of Laws
Second Class Honours (Upper Division)
Admissions
- Hong Kong
- Malaysia
Activities
- Member of the Program Committee, Silicon Valley Arbitration and Mediation Center
- Member of Intellectual Property Committee, The Law Society of Hong Kong
- Vice Chair (IP), Shadow Economy Task Force, The American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong
- Independent Members' Representative, the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI)
- Member, Standing Committee on Commercialization of IP, AIPPI
- Member, Asian Patent Attorneys’ Association (APAA)
- Member, Intellectual Property Rights Protection Alliance
- Member, Silicon Valley Arbitration & Mediation Center (SVAMC)
- Member, The Hong Kong Institute of Trade Mark Practitioners
- Member, Competition Law Committee, Law Society of Hong Kong
- Member, HKIAC Marketing and Promotion Committee for the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA) Congress 2022
- Panellist, Hong Kong IP Department's Panel of Advisors for Pro Bono IP Consultation
- Member, International Trademark Association (INTA)
- Member, Unreal Campaign Committee, International Trademark Association (INTA)
- Mentor, Student Internship Programme, Asian University for Women
- Legal Representative, Mayer Brown's Intellectual Property Agency, Beijing
- Ranked World Trademark Review (WTR) 1000: China and SARs: Hong Kong (2023)
- Asia Super 50 TMT Lawyers – Asian Legal Business (2022)
- Recommended - Individuals: Litigation, Hong Kong – IAM Patent 1000 (2022)
- Up and Coming - Intellectual Property (International Firms), China – Chambers Global (2022, 2023)
- Up and Coming - Intellectual Property (International Firms), China – Chambers Greater China Region (2022, 2023)
- Asia Super 50 Disputes Lawyers – Asian Legal Business (2021)
- Next Generation Partner - Intellectual Property, Hong Kong – The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2021-2023)
- Next Generation Partner - TMT, Hong Kong – The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2021-2023)
- Lawyer of the Year for Copyright – Euromoney Asia Women in Business Law Awards (2020, 2022)
- Winner of the Litigation category, Hong Kong –Client Choice Awards (2022)
- Future Leaders - Partners – Who’s Who Legal: Commercial Litigation (2022, 2023)
- Recognized by Asian Legal Business (ALB) as one of the 2020 "40 under 40" lawyers in Asia
- Notable Practitioner – Managing IP IP Stars (2020-2023)
- Rising Star – Managing IP IP Stars (2019)
- Individual Silver Award - in recognition of over 50 pro-bono hours – Law Society Pro Bono and Community Service Award (2020)
- Individual Gold Award - in recognition of over 100 pro-bono hours – Law Society Pro Bono and Community Service Award (2018, 2019)
- “Mayer Brown’s Amita Haylock is a first-rate practitioner who ‘thinks outside the box’ and impresses sources with her ‘persistence, diligence and exceptional commitment’ to her clients’ cases.” – Who’s Who Legal: Commercial Litigation (2022)
- “Working closely with her US and Asia colleagues, courtroom dynamo Amita Haylock has spot-on trial capabilities and has seen many successes before the Hong Kong International Arbitration.” – IAM Patent 1000 (2022)
- “Haylock is extremely experienced, acutely intelligent and an exceptionally lovely personality. She works extremely hard and efficiently. To date, she has won every case that the foundation has entrusted to her.” – Benchmark Litigation Asia-Pacific (2022)
- “Amita Haylock offers advice on a wide range of contentious and transactional IP matters, including copyright and trade mark infringement cases and licensing deals. One client notes: ‘She is a very considerate lawyer. Client care is one of the most important things I value, and she has very good client care and considers costs for clients.’” – Chambers Greater China Region (2022)
- “Amita Haylock’s persistence, diligence and exceptional commitment delivered a successful outcome for us.” – The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2022)
- “Amita Haylock never lost her focus or belief in her ability to tackle the issues successfully.” – The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2022)
- “Amita Haylock is standout – she’s responsive, commercial and extremely smart. She doesn’t shy away from taking ‘a view’ and always looks to provide actionable advice with the client’s particular needs in mind. She takes time to understand each client, and the services provided by her team very much reflects this. Very highly recommended. Really the go-to counsel in this space [TMT] in Asia.” – The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2022)
- “Amita Haylock stands out for her aptitude at handling telecoms and broadcasting litigation for clients, including in the context of judicial reviews.” – The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2022)
- “Amita Haylock is a standout partner.” – The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2022)
- “Amita Haylock, who is well-known in the market for handling IP and TMT-related disputes, is 'excellent’.” – The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2019)
- “Amita Haylock's wide-ranging contentious and non-contentious expertise includes the representation of applicants and respondents in a number of high-profile judicial reviews concerning telecoms and broadcasting issues in Hong Kong.” – The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2019)