Spoor & Fisher receives top ranking in Chambers Global Guide 2021

Spoor & Fisher receives top ranking in Chambers Global Guide 2021
Spoor & Fisher is proud to have been recognised, once again, as one of South Africa’s Band 1 firms for 2021, in the Intellectual Property in South Africa Legal Rankings, according to Chambers & Partners. The Chambers Global Guide ranks the top lawyers and law firms in over 200 jurisdictions across the world.

The Intellectual Property rankings have been designed to provide the most in-depth insights and reviews of the top ranked lawyers and law firms. The firms included in the rankings have been recommended by in-house counsel, other third-party experts and private practice lawyers.

The Chambers & Partners 2021 review refers to Spoor & Fisher as a “distinguished practice with renowned proficiency across a heterogeneous variety of IP-related commercial concerns. Well regarded for its ability to service its prestigious client base in South Africa and throughout the continent, with clients derived from industry sectors such as healthcare, consumer goods and financial services.”

Spoor & Fisher is described by Chambers & Partners as demonstrating proficiency acting for clients in areas including trade mark and patent prosecution and enforcement, acting for both plaintiffs and defendants, with comprehensive accompanying registration and renewal capabilities. Additionally the firm is noted for its expertise in anti-counterfeiting.

According to Chambers & Partners clients endorse these viewpoints, reporting that they describe the firm as providing “excellent service,” and saying that “They know our portfolio extremely well and have it all memorised. The service is always on time and they are always giving extra help.”

The Chambers and Partners, 2021 ranking specifically recognises the following attorneys for their expertise:

• Carl Van Rooyen is a longstanding fixture in the market, with a well-established reputation for his contentious IP representation. His practice focuses on both trade mark and copyright disputes, as well as unlawful competition.
• Charles Webster is lauded as “one of the best IP attorneys in the country,” as well as an “expert and specialist litigator.” He is an accomplished trade mark and copyright litigation counsel with further experience of issues relating to competition law.
• Eben van Wyk has notable clients in the sports, consumer goods and retail industries. He is instructed for his counsel on trade mark opposition and infringement disputes, as well as trade mark filings and domain name registration.
• Herman Blignaut, is a skilled attorney who is regularly engaged on trade mark and copyright litigation and opposition. Clients commend him for being “very good with trade mark opposition and searches,” while other market commentators note his work on major mandates in the market.
• Hugh Moubray, is one of the field’s most notable and most well-respected practitioners. He has amassed a wealth of IP litigation experience in his career, and remains one of the most sought-out choices of counsel for opposition and infringement cases. He heads the firm’s patent litigation practice.
• Jonathan Whittaker, is the Pretoria-based chair of the firm. He has a particularly well-established reputation for his patent work, with his extensive litigation experience being complemented by his advisory practice. He acts for clients in a range of areas including the mining and manufacturing sectors.

As one of the biggest filers of trade mark applications, Spoor & Fisher is geared to handle most any trade mark query or instruction, anywhere in the world. Its trade mark department deals with trade mark prosecution at all stages, as well as oppositions, trade mark infringement, passing off, ambush marketing, unlawful competition, company name objections, domain name disputes, regulatory provisions, and consumer- and advertising-related matters, with its litigation and anti-counterfeiting teams available for enforcement globally or across Africa.

The Chambers Global Guide ranks top lawyers and firms in over 190 countries, based on technical legal ability, client service, commercial vision and business understanding, diligence, value for money, depth of team, and professional conduct. The ratings are generated from direct client feedback, information submitted by each firm, and an in-depth review of public filings on each firm’s transactions – all of which is analysed by a London-based team of 200+ researchers. The Chambers Global 2021 ranking is now available at chambers.com.