Attorneys from Bardehle Pagenberg in Munich join Fish to start office
Boston, MA, September 11, 2007 – LAWFUEL – The Legal Newswire – Fish & Richardson P.C., the largest intellectual property law firm in the world, today announced it will open its first office outside of the U.S. in Munich, Germany on October 1, 2007. The office will open with five professionals, including two partners from the Bardehle Pagenberg firm, with plans to grow to twelve professionals by the end of 2008. Fish has had an international client base for many years – including clients in Germany such as Porsche, Zeiss, SAP, and Siemens – and the new office will give the firm a home base in Europe to continue to expand its global practice.
“We are the premier intellectual property law firm in the U.S. and have been for over 125 years. Inventive corporations today need a worldwide IP strategy and are often involved in multi-national litigation, and a European presence will help us to serve those needs,” said Peter J. Devlin, President of Fish & Richardson. “Munich is one of the most important technology centers in Europe, so this was a perfect location for our first office outside the United States.”
The new office will be led by Frank Peterreins and Alexander Harguth. Dr. Peterreins practices both patent prosecution and patent litigation. He is qualified as a German attorney-at-law, a German patent attorney, and also a European Patent Attorney, and he is one of only a handful of attorneys in Germany who hold all of these qualifications.
Dr. Peterreins has served clients that include the European market leader in DVD production, the largest chemical company in Finland, a world-renowned bone plate manufacturer, a prominent US-based stent and catheter manufacturer, a leading German maker of pipe manufacturing machines, and an innovative developer of high-end optical measuring techniques.
Alexander Harguth handles a diverse patent litigation practice. Many of his cases span multiple European jurisdictions. Mr. Harguth is an attorney-at-law in both Germany and France. He has served clients that include a world-leading sports equipment maker, a highly regarded international dental equipment manufacturer, an international leader in cosmetic products, and a distinguished Swedish maker of automotive technologies.
“Strategically, for a firm of our stature, a German presence makes sense on many levels, the most important of which is to make us better able to protect and assert our clients’ intellectual property rights throughout Europe, a key market for the global technology companies we serve,” said John Gagel, the firm’s chair of international strategy.
“We rely on Fish & Richardson to handle our significant IP litigation and prosecution needs. We are pleased that they are opening an office in Munich, and look forward to getting to know the new members of the Fish & Richardson team there,” said Klaus Gnatzig, Carl Zeiss AG, Konzernfunktion Recht und Patente/Corporate Legal Affairs and Patents, Patentabteilung/Patent Department, Leiter Patentabteilung/Manager Patent Department.
Founded in 1878, Fish & Richardson is the largest intellectual property law firm in the world. The firm has over 430 attorneys and technology specialists in 10 offices in the U.S. and one office in Munich, Germany. Fish has long represented great innovators and entrepreneurs, including pioneering inventors such as Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison, and the Wright Brothers. Fish handles more patent litigation than any other law firm in the U.S. (IP Law & Business July 2007) and was rated among the top firms in ITC patent litigation by that publication in June 2007. In March 2007 Fish & Richardson was recognized by Managing Intellectual Property as the best patent litigation firm in the United States. The firm also rates among the top U.S. firms in patents and trademarks obtained. In August 2007, Fish was named the top intellectual property (IP) law firm in the U.S. in Corporate Counsel Magazine’s sixth annual survey of “Who Represents America’s Biggest Companies.”
Contact: Amy Blumenthal or Kelly Largey
Blumenthal & Associates Fish & Richardson P.C.
(617) 879-1511 (800) 818-5070
