Incoming delegations:
IP attaché visits
In March, CIPA welcomed Samuel Stone, the UK Intellectual Property Office’s (IPO) China Attaché and Max Jiang, the China IP Business Support Advisor, for a meeting with representatives from IP Federation and CIPA’s in-house members.
The IPO held an Attaché Week, during which members of their attaché network came to London to meet their main stakeholders. The attachés met the CIPA Officers for dinner at the British Library and participated in podcast recordings with Lee Davies and his deputy, Neil Lampert.
UK-IPO China Symposium
In July, the IPO hosted Commissioner Shen Changyu and officials from the China National Intellectual Property Administration for an invitation-only event. The symposium presented an opportunity to discuss the latest developments in the UK and Chinese IP systems directly with national leaders and covered patents, trade marks and IP-backed finance. CIPA, as a key strategic stakeholder, was offered 30 places to this event, and Vice-President Simon Wright spoke on a panel on changes to the Chinese patent system, with a focus on pharmaceutical matters and patent term extensions.
Visit from the Korea Patent Attorney Association
In September, ILC members welcomed a delegation from the Korea Patent Attorney Association. There was a meeting with the leadership team in the morning, with the discussion covering privilege, Substantive Patent Law Harmonisation, education, AI, and SME support, and a presentation on KPAA Committee activity. In the afternoon there was a seminar for CIPA members on developments in patent practice, legislative amendments, and notable cases, followed by a drinks reception and dinner with the visiting delegates.
Visit from the Japan Patent Attorney Association
In November, the ILC hosted delegates from the Japan Patent Attorney Association. Members of the Japan Working Group took the visiting delegation for lunch and a sightseeing tour around London on the weekend of their arrival. The next day, there was a closed roundtable meeting with the visiting delegation to discuss the use of AI tools and the Emotional Perception case, along with updates on UPC developments and SEPs. After lunch, the visiting delegates gave a seminar for CIPA members, followed by a drinks reception at the Sir Christopher Hatton.
India Conclave
In December, we hosted the UK IPO India Conclave, consisting of a meeting with Indian Chief Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, attended by President Bobby Mukherjee and Divya Srinivasan, the IPO’s IP Attaché for India. This was the first time an Indian judge had travelled to Europe to meet with an international association. It was a successful event, viewed on both sides as a positive relationship-building exercise.
Outgoing delegations:
Visit to Japan
An ILC delegation, led by President Bobby Mukherjee, visited Japan in February to meet with the Japan Patent Attorney Association (JPAA) and its industry counterpart, the Japan Intellectual Property Association (JIPA). The delegation met the JPAA in Tokyo on 4 February for a closed meeting with the leadership team, with a heavy AI focus. In the afternoon, our group held a seminar for JPAA members, with presentations on the Unified Patent Court (UPC). There was an evening reception, at which the Deputy Head of Trade from the Tokyo Embassy, James Carter, attended and spoke.
The following day, our group met JIPA to discuss case law, general practice points, and the issue of in-house patent attorney representation rights at the UPC. On the final day, the delegation visited the JPAA’s Osaka offices to present a seminar and attended a reception.
Visit to Canada
A delegation led by President Bobby Mukherjee, North America Working Group Lead Andy Harding, and CIPA Council members visited Ottawa in June. There was a meeting with the IPIC leadership team, where education and training, AI, privilege, and harmonisation were discussed. There was an afternoon seminar, where the delegates presented on matters including the UPC, agent/client privilege, trends in examinations and qualifications in the UK. The delegation also presented IPIC with a gift of a framed patent certificate ahead of their centenary in 2026. The group also visited the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) for an informal meeting, to discuss the use of AI in professional practice, privilege and harmonisation, patent grace periods and access and qualification routes into the profession.
Visit to Dubai
In November, the ILC and IPO led a joint delegation to Dubai. They attended meetings with the IP Minister, the AIPPI UAE group, and the British Embassy. The groups were open to cooperative learning as the UAE is developing their IP strategy at a rapid pace and they intend to invest in innovation over oil and gas. The joint delegation allowed for a mix of policy conversations paired with industry expertise and was deemed very successful from both sides.
International conferences:
Institute of Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys of Australia Conference
Committee Chair Daniel Chew attended the IPTA Conference and spoke on a panel, discussing the use of AI and global issues that could affect practice. He also chaired a panel on ‘UPC: Claimant and Defendant Perspective’, which was structured to discuss the practical aspect of the court, rather than just the case law, which was well-received by attendees.
US Intellectual Property Owners Annual Meeting and drinks reception
At the Intellectual Property Owners Annual (IPOA) Meeting in September, Bobby spoke on a panel about the UK design rights and EU design reform. After his panel, he and Daniel met with the IPOA leadership team, supported by CIPA Fellow Mike Jennings and External Affairs Officer Emily Jones. The meeting covered education and the IP apprenticeship scheme, privilege, Substantive Patent Law Harmonisation (SPLH), and collaboration with WIPO. It was agreed that our associations would continue to collaborate, with plans for joint webinars in 2026. The annual drinks reception was held on the last day of the conference and is becoming a fixture on the Conference calendar.
AIPPI Congress /Global Network of National IP Practitioner Associations Meeting
Daniel and former Committee Chair Tony Rollins attended both the AIPPI Congress and GNIPA meeting in September in Yokohama. The GNIPA meeting covered harmonisation, AI, and regional updates, as well as elections for a new President and committee members, with being Daniel elected the new European Committee Member. Tony gave a presentation on SPLH and Daniel participated on a panel discussing use of AI for IP firms alongside Indian, Australian, Japanese, and American speakers.
AIPLA Annual Meeting
In October, a delegation of ILC and Council members, including Bobby Mukherjee and Simon Wright, attended the AIPLA Annual Meeting in Washington. They met with the AIPLA Executive team where Bobby spoke about his presidential priorities and introduced Simon as President Elect. During the conference Simon spoke on a panel session, providing an overview on latest EPO law updates.
APAA Meetings
In November, ILC members who attended APAA met with a number of our sister associations in Asia, including Association of Singapore Patent Attorneys (ASPA), Japan Patent Attorney Association (JPAA), Institute of Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys of Australia (IPTA), New Zealand Intellectual Property Attorneys Incorporated (NZIPA), Taiwan Patent Attorneys Association (TWPAA), and for the first time, the Malaysian Bar Council and Malaysian IP Association.
Virtual events:
IP China Attaché Webinar
In March, CIPA, the IP Federation and the IPO hosted a webinar, ‘A view from China with the IP Attaché’ with Samuel Stone, the IP Attaché and China and Max Jiang, the China IP Business Support Advisor, chaired by Danel. They discussed the latest insights on intellectual property developments in China, updates from CNIPA, and covered notable cases in the country.
AIPLA Webinar
In December, Mike Jennings and Shohta Ueno gave a webinar to AIPLA members on AI developments in Europe. The webinar was CLE-accredited and was one of the most well-attended seminars AIPLA offered in 2025, with circa 150 members joining.