AG hires leading IP litigator and team as part of strategic expansion

International law firm Addleshaw Goddard (AG) has hired leading IP litigator Geoff Steward and four members of his award-winning team to further enhance its directory-ranked intellectual property practice.

Steward will join AG in October from Stobbs, where he was Head of Litigation and built a high-profile practice that won the Managing IP “Trade Mark Disputes” team award over several years.

Steward and his team have represented some of the world’s leading brands in significant disputes, acting on a range of reported cases in IPEC, the High Court, and the Court of Appeal. This included acting for Marks & Spencer in relation to the highly-publicized case relating to the design of its light-up gin bottle (Marks and Spencer PLC v. Aldi Stores Ltd in the High Court (2023) and Court of Appeal (2024)) and the owners of the Umbro sportswear brand (Iconix Luxembourg Holdings SARL v. Dream Pairs Europe Inc & Anor in the High Court (2023) and Court of Appeal (2024)), establishing authorities on post-sale confusion, honest concurrent use/acquiescence and registered design interpretation.

Prior to his appointment at Stobbs in 2018, Steward was Head of IP at Macfarlanes, where he acted on a number of well-known trademark authorities, from Davidoff to Lotus.

Steward and the team will be based primarily in AG’s London headquarters, supporting AG clients and matters across the firm’s 19 global offices.

AG’s full-service IP team has grown significantly in recent years, including the recent promotions of Emily Nuttall-Wood as Partner and Jemma Green as Legal Director. The team has particular expertise in the retail & consumer sector, acting for recognized brands such as Stella McCartney, Kickers, and Harrods.

The firm’s retail & consumer sector, led by Andrew Rosling and Rona Bar-Isaac, is tier-one ranked in both Chambers and Legal 500. Its clients include Asda, Boohoo, Diageo, JD Sports and Primark.

Georgina Powling, Head of IP at Addleshaw Goddard, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Geoff and his team to Addleshaw Goddard.

“Geoff’s reputation as one of the UK’s leading IP litigators, combined with the expertise of the team joining him, is really exciting for our clients across all sectors. The firm’s ambition is to be a tier-one IP practice and I am delighted that Geoff will lead, alongside our UK and international IP partners, in delivering that vision.” 

Mark Molyneux, Head of Disputes at Addleshaw Goddard, said: “We are delighted to add Geoff and his team to the AG disputes practice.  Having recently promoted IP litigator Emily Nuttall-Wood to partner, we have made a significant investment in our IP disputes capability to support our clients in protecting and enhancing their brands and IP.”

Steward said: “I am privileged to be joining such a highly-regarded firm. AG has a wonderful existing platform from which to help grow the IP practice to the next level. My team and I can’t wait to get started with Georgina and Emily.”

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