As I recently reported, Australian (standard) patent filings in 2022 remained close to the historic highs of the previous year. This implies, of course, that patent attorneys filing applications on behalf of domestic and foreign clients should, overall, also have maintained high numbers of new filings. But, of course, individual firms fared differently in the competition for this work. Looking at total new standard patent filings across Australia and New Zealand, gains were made by the two firms owned by QANTM IP Limited (ASX:QIP), namely Davies Collison Cave (up by 5.7% to 4094 applications) and FPA Patent Attorneys (up by 3.9% to 2444 applications, after incorporating filings originally made by Cotters). Other firms to make notable gains, in terms of both filing numbers and percentage growth, were FB Rice (up by 7.6% to 3697 applications), Wrays (up by 16.2% to 1380 applications) and RnB IP (up by 10.5% to 864 applications). Firms that also made good percentage gains, albeit off a lower base of filings, included Allens (6.0%), Michael Buck IP (6.6%), Adams Pluck (22.6%), Dentons (30.7%) and Collison & Co (18.7%).
On the other side of the ledger, Madderns’ filings fell by 13.5%, to 801 applications. Within the group of firms owned by IPH Limited (ASX:IPH), Spruson & Ferguson, AJ Park and Pizzeys all saw declines in new filings (by 7.9%, 2.8% and 2.9% respectively), while Griffith Hack held steady with a small (0.6%) increase in filings. IPH has just reported its half-year financial results (for July-December 2022) [PDF 255kB], and while the news was positive for the group overall – a 24% uplift in underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to A$80.4 million – like-for-like EBITDA for the Australian and New Zealand IP businesses declined by 6%. IPH has blamed this partly on travel expenses, with activity increasing following the end of COVID-related travel restrictions. But it is apparent that a decline in Australian and New Zealand patent filings has also contributed.
In related news from the IPH group, while Pizzeys settled its legal dispute with RnB IP late last year, Spruson & Ferguson recently commenced similar proceedings in the Federal Court of Australia (case no. NSD6/2023) against upstart firm GLMR and its four principals. And, just as the founders of RnB IP were former employees of Pizzeys, the principals of GLMR are all former employees of Spruson and Ferguson. Through its Federal Court action, Sprusons is seeking an order for preliminary discovery – presumably fishing for evidence of GLMR’s contact with Sprusons’ clients – which is precisely how Pizzeys commenced its action against RnB IP in June 2019. To date, GLMR has filed just 194 applications (with the earliest being in February 2022). However, it has also taken over responsibility for at least 629 applications that were previously filed and/or managed by Spruson & Ferguson. It is early days yet, but we can perhaps expect to see this dispute take much the same course as Pizzeys v RnB IP.
Let’s have a look at the numbers in more detail.