Expertise
Sarah-Jane has drafted and prosecuted patent applications for clients across a diverse range of technologies in both the chemical and pharmaceutical fields. As well as representing large multinational companies in prosecution, opposition and appeals at the European Patent Office, she also enjoys working with smaller clients and individual inventors.
Sarah-Jane works primarily in the chemical and pharmaceutical sectors, where her PhD in organic synthesis gives her considerable technical insight. Her chemical practice includes a diverse range of technologies with a particular emphasis on materials chemistry, polymers, catalysts, air and gas separation, cryogenics and deposition techniques. Sarah-Jane’s work in the pharmaceutical field focuses on techniques for the site-specific delivery of drugs for GI-related indications.
Adept at working with clients of all sizes, from individual inventors to multinational companies, Sarah-Jane is involved with the preparation, filing and prosecution of patent applications, both at the European and UK Patent Offices. She also handles the global prosecution of clients’ patent portfolios and has considerable experience of representing clients in oppositions and appeals at the European Patent Office.
Sarah-Jane has been heavily involved in the firm’s STEM: Branching Out project, which aims to promote careers in science, technology, engineering and maths in general and in the IP profession in particular. Through her role as a STEM Ambassador, she drafted the first UK patent application to be filed under the Beck Greener student pro bono scheme.
With her colleagues John Hull, Anna Hatt, Matthew Ng and Deborah Hart, Sarah-Jane provides a monthly update on UK patent case law for the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys journal.
Qualifications and memberships
- European Patent Attorney 2016
- Cert IP Law, Queen Mary College, University of London 2014
- DPhil, Organic Chemistry, Linacre College, Oxford University, 2012
- MChem, Chemistry for Drug Discovery, University of Bath, 2008
- Member of Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA)
- Member of epi (Institute of Professional Representatives before the European Patent Office)
Career
Sarah-Jane joined the firm in 2012 after completing her PhD in research related to the development of a ligand-controlled regioselectivity switch for rhodium-catalyzed hydroacylation reactions. She qualified as a European Patent Attorney in 2016.
