AJ Park’s continued recognition on the local and international stage

News  \  17 Mar 2021

AJ Park and our extremely talented attorneys are regularly recognised on the local and international stage for their leadership and contribution to the intellectual property (IP) industry. In this update we highlight some of the recent awards and accolades the firm has received.

Asia IP Awards

AJ Park has been named New Zealand Copyright Firm of the Year at the 2020 Asia IP Awards.

50 firms from 19 Asia-Pacific jurisdictions took home trophies at the 11th annual Asia IP Awards in November 2020. The awards named top trade marks, patents, and copyright practices, as determined by in-house counsel from Asia, Europe, and the Americas. More than 5,000 in-house counsel were polled by Asia IP magazine throughout the first part of 2020. The event also named international award winners in each of the practice areas.

Beaton Client Choice Awards

Each year, Beaton conducts a large-scale survey of the users of professional services in Australia and New Zealand. This data is used to adjudicate their annual Client Choice Awards.

We are pleased to announce that AJ Park has been named a finalist in the Client Choice Awards 2021. The winners will be announced in both the Australian Financial Review and on the Client Choice Awards website on 23 March 2021. 

Chambers Asia-Pacific

AJ Park has once again earned a ‘Band 1’ rating as one of the top New Zealand firms for IP in the Chambers Asia-Pacific 2021 rankings.

The Chambers and Partners Asia-Pacific 2021 guide highlights that AJ Park is known for ‘having a superb offering giving solid advice on patents, trade marks and copyright, covering both advisory and contentious work, acting forglobal corporations and leading domestic businesses across a broad range of sectors including technology, media and manufacturing, handling both domestic and international matters, with particular commitment to enforcing the IP rights of its clients.’ We have been recognised for our ‘extensive expertisein managing IP portfolios and multi-jurisdictional filings’ and were acknowledged by one interviewee for having ‘a large share of the market and a large number of very good practitioners’. We were praised by another for ‘offering very high-quality work and having a broad team with excellent experience and attention to detail.’

About Chambers and Partners

Often referred to as ‘the gold-standard’, Chambers and Partners conducts extensive research on law firms and lawyers in 200 jurisdictions. Law firms and individual lawyers are ranked in bands from 1-6, with 1 being the best. The qualities on which rankings are assessed include technical legal ability, professional conduct, client service, commercial astuteness, diligence, value for money, depth of team, commitment, and other qualities most valued by clients.

IAM Strategy 300 

AJ Park principals Anton Blijlevens and Mark Hargreaves have been named world-leading IP strategists in the 2020 IAM Strategy 300.

This unique guide is an annual publication listing individuals who lead the way in the development and implementation of world-class IP value creation programmes and who offer top-tier services relating to the development and implementation of IP strategies to enable IP owners to maximise the value of their portfolios. Only those nominated multiple times by different parties as outstanding IP strategists are listed in the IAM Strategy 300. Those who appear on the list, which is limited to 300 individuals worldwide, are regarded as ‘best in class’.

In addition, Anton Blijlevens and Mark Hargreaves have been named in the inaugural IAM Strategy 300 Global Leaders guide 2021.

 

IP Stars

Trade mark rankings 2021

For the sixth consecutive year, AJ Park remains at the top of the trade mark tables in Managing IP’s 2021 edition of IP Stars and is the only tier 1 firm in the trade mark contentious category. 

The 2021 trade mark rankings recognise the leading firms for trade mark filing/prosecution and contentious work in more than 50 jurisdictions. Congratulations to AJ Park principals Lynell Tuffery Huria and Penny Catley, who have been named as IP Stars for trade marks.

These are the first confirmed ranking results from the research for the 2021 edition of IP Stars, which started in September 2020. The patent rankings will be announced later this year.

Rising Stars 2020/21

AJ Park senior associates Grace Thomas-Edmond, Helen Bellchambers, Kate Giddens, Matthieu Mouscardes and Thomas Huthwaite have been named in Managing IP’s 2020/21 Rising Stars publication. This special list recognises some of the best up-and-coming IP practitioners who have contributed to the success of their firms and clients. 

The individuals selected as Rising Stars typically have less than 10 years' post-qualification experience and are below partner or equivalent level. However, in certain circumstances Managing IP can consider and rank individuals with more than 10 years of experience and/or junior partners. Although selection is primarily based on an individual’s contributions and expertise, activities in the IP community are also taken into account.

About IP Stars

IP Stars is a leading specialist guide to IP law firms and practitioners worldwide. The research for the guide covers a variety of IP practice areas and more than 70 jurisdictions, making it the most comprehensive and widely respected guide in the IP profession. The rankings are based on a weighted evaluation of information from different sources, including work data submitted by firms, independent research findings, and market feedback. The research for IP Stars is conducted rigorously and impartially. No firm or individual can pay to be ranked or win Managing IP’s awards and there is no fee to participate.

 

The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific

The Legal 500 has launched its 2021 Asia-Pacific guide and we are proud to again feature as a top-tier firm for IP in New Zealand.

In its review of the firm, The Legal 500 said:

AJ Park is recognised as “the market leader” and further consolidated its prominent role in the market with the acquisition in 2020 of IP firm Baldwins. The firm has a track record extending back almost 130 years, and it is still recognised as a prominent force in all aspects of patents, trade marks, designs, copyright, strategy and commercialisation, plant variety rights, dispute resolution and renewals. In Wellington, Michael Brown leads on engineering and ICT patents, Duncan de Geest on life sciences patents... …Corinne Cole [is] also recognised as [a] key partner… in the trade marks practice, and Mark Hargreaves is a commercial and strategic IP specialist. The merger also brought the highly experienced Penny Catley back to the firm. In Auckland, Amanda Griffiths is head of the trade marks group and Anton Blijlevens is a recognised leader in the area of mechanical and manufacturing patents.’

In addition, Amanda Griffiths, Anton Blijlevens, Mark Hargreaves, and Penny Catley are listed in The Legal 500’s elite ‘leading lawyers’ list.

About The Legal 500

For 33 years, The Legal 500 has been analysing the capabilities of law firms in 150 jurisdictions across the world. The Legal 500’s comprehensive research programme is based on feedback from 300,000 clients worldwide, submissions from law firms, and interviews with leading lawyers.

When reviewing the performance of a firm, The Legal 500 researchers focus on the bench strength of the team, and the consistency of quality of the individuals within the team. The areas that are considered include technical ability, in-depth capability, market share, track record, reputation, and perception in the market. Simply put, The Legal 500 highlights firms and individuals who are providing the most cutting-edge and innovative advice.

 

Who’s Who Legal

Congratulations to Penny Catley, who has been named a global leader for trade marks 2020, and to Matt Devine and Michael Brown, who have been named global leaders for patent agents & attorneys 2020 in the latest edition of Who’s Who Legal.

Since 1996 Who’s Who Legal has identified the foremost legal practitioners in multiple areas of business law. In total, Who’s Who Legal features over 24,000 of the world’s leading private practice lawyers and 2,500 consulting experts from over 150 national jurisdictions. Who’s Who Legal prides itself on the integrity and authority of its findings. It is impossible to buy entry into this publication.

WTR 1000

AJ Park has once again received a gold band ranking by World Trademark Review (WTR) in the 2021 WTR 1000.

The WTR 1000 shines a spotlight on the firms and individuals that are deemed outstanding in this critical area of practice. The WTR 1000 recommends who it considers to be the best of the trade mark scene. Only those delivering top-quality services make the cut.

While all firms and individuals listed in the WTR 1000 are leaders in their field, some are considered to have an edge over their competitors. The WTR 1000 recommendations are therefore presented in gold, silver, and bronze bands to reflect the reputations of teams and professionals relative to their peers in the field. Firms and individuals in the gold band are those that attract the most positive comments from sources and are considered the ‘crème de la crème’.  

By far the largest trademark firm in New Zealand, AJ Park is well-staffed by an efficient team managing IP matters for domestic and overseas entities. Over the course of nearly 130 years, the firm has built one of Australasia’s largest teams of IP lawyers. Spread across two offices in Auckland and Wellington, the side handles trademark work for a slew of Fortune 500 companies, as well as numerous well-known Australian and New Zealand enterprises. In June 2020, it announced its acquisition of rival IP firm Baldwins to further boost its IP team.’ 

To research the market, WTR conducted face-to-face and telephone interviews, and exchanged correspondence over a four-month period with hundreds of lawyers, attorneys, and their clients involved with trade marks. They also gathered written submissions from firms detailing their recent activity in the field. Individuals qualify for inclusion in the WTR 1000 upon receiving sufficient positive feedback from market sources with knowledge of their practice and the market in which they operate. 

Congratulations to Jonathan Aumonier-Ward, Lynell Tuffery Huria, Penny Catley, and Thomas Huthwaite, who have been individually recognised for their outstanding work.

  • Jonathan Aumonier-Ward was highlighted for ‘consistently providing accessible and business-friendly advice’. ‘With a cool head when it comes to enforcement matters, he offers solutions that anticipate and facilitate the client’s business objectives. He also has a knack for making complex tasks look very easy. Jonathan provides strategic and contextualised advice based on the client and the industry within which they operate
  • Lynell Tuffery Huria was described as an ‘excellent reputation as an indigenous IP rights and Māori law expert’ who ‘works through the complex factors involved in such matters and identifies functional alternatives to the typical western IP model’
  • Penny Catley has been gold-ranked for bringing her ‘astute commercial insights and a wealth of experience to the team
  • Thomas Huthwaite was acknowledged as being an excellent addition to the litigation side. “He is absolutely fantastic. Young, incredibly smart, his legal analysis is great. Thomas is an exceptional lawyer. His advice is considered, sound and relevant. He is like the captain of a ship in stormy waters; calm and providing clear guidance at all times. His expert guidance in invaluable’.
About the WTR 1000

The WTR 1000 is the only definitive guide exclusively dedicated to identifying the world’s leading trademark legal services providers. Through an extensive research process conducted by a team of highly qualified, full-time analysts, the publication identifies the leading trademark law firms and individuals in over 80 global jurisdictions and US states.