Intellectual property is critical to innovation and competitive advantage. Ensuring clarity of IP ownership, the right to use IP assets, and their value are critical to success. The decisions that fix those questions are made at contract stage, in prosecution strategy, in licensing negotiations and in the structure of research and commercialisation arrangements. Getting them right creates value. Getting them wrong creates disputes that are costly to resolve and sometimes impossible to reverse.
We advise major corporations, government agencies, universities, research institutions, listed companies, technology companies, media organisations, defence contractors, startups and global brands on the full spectrum of intellectual property work: registration and portfolio strategy, brand protection and enforcement, licensing and commercialisation, litigation in the Federal Court and on appeal, and the emerging IP challenges that arise from AI, open source technology and digital content. The practice operates at both ends of the lifecycle, from the initial structuring of IP ownership through to contested proceedings in superior courts.
Areas of expertise
IP rights are only as valuable as the protection that secures them. Trade mark registration strategy, clearance, prosecution and portfolio structuring determine whether a brand or a technology can be defended when it matters. The same applies to patent protection in technical and life sciences fields, and to copyright frameworks.
We advise on trade mark registration and prosecution domestically and internationally, managing clearance searches, examination responses, oppositions and consent negotiations. We advise on patent strategy, freedom to operate assessments and the protection of technological and biological innovations. In copyright, the work spans content licensing, moral rights, ownership disputes, fair dealing and the complex questions that arise when existing copyright frameworks meet new content creation and distribution models. Registered trade mark attorneys are embedded in the practice.
A brand's market position depends on the integrity of the IP that defines it. Portfolio management is ongoing strategic work, not a registration exercise. Monitoring, enforcement on e-commerce platforms, opposition proceedings, removal actions and the coordination of international filing programs across agent networks all require active management to be effective.
We manage domestic and global trade mark portfolios for major Australian and international brands, including clearance strategy, prosecution, renewal programs, opposition and cancellation proceedings, and enforcement action on e-commerce marketplaces including counterfeiting and lookalike conduct on major international platforms. The work spans consumer brands in retail, activewear, fashion, food and agribusiness, as well as corporate and institutional clients establishing new brand identities in competitive markets.
IP rights that cannot be enforced have limited value. Enforcement strategy begins before litigation with monitoring, IP validity advice, cease and desist strategy and negotiated resolution. Where proceedings are necessary, they require precise evidentiary preparation, command of the relevant substantive law and the capability to run complex matters at trial and on appeal.
We act in trade mark, copyright, patent, design and moral rights proceedings in the Federal Court and at appellate level. The practice has particular depth in copyright litigation for media organisations and content publishers, including landmark proceedings that have tested the boundaries of copyright law in reporting and public interest contexts. We advise on and conduct urgent interlocutory applications, including search and seizure orders, and act in matters that go to the Full Federal Court and High Court of Australia on questions of principle with market-wide consequence.
Technology, research and innovation create value only when the IP framework governing them is properly structured. Ownership allocation, licensing architecture, revenue-sharing mechanisms and the legal arrangements governing joint development and research collaboration determine whether commercial outcomes are achievable and defensible. In sectors where the science is complex and the regulatory interface significant.
We advise on technology transfer, patent and plant breeders rights licensing, research collaboration agreements, joint development frameworks and commercialisation structures across universities, cooperative research centres, listed biotech and agricultural companies, medical technology providers and defence-adjacent innovators. Work includes negotiating licensing arrangements with international counterparties, structuring cross-border commercialisation pathways, managing the IP dimensions of CRC wind-ups and advising on the IP frameworks for AI-driven product development entering regulated markets. We also conduct in-house secondments supporting R&D functions in medical technology, where the IP, regulatory and commercial workstreams operate in parallel.
Artificial intelligence raises IP questions that existing frameworks do not fully resolve. Who owns outputs generated by AI systems? How are training data rights acquired and documented? Does the use of AI outputs risk create IP infringement risks How does open source licence compliance interact with proprietary software embedded in commercial platforms? These are current legal decisions, not future ones, and the positions taken now determine exposure for the life of the technology.
We advise on IP ownership and rights allocation in AI development and deployment, including the contractual treatment of AI-generated outputs, training data licensing and IP structuring in technology procurement and commercialisation. We advise on open-source licence compliance and the consequences of inadequate governance in commercial software. We also advise on the intersection of AI and copyright as regulatory frameworks develop, and on IP structuring for AI products entering regulated markets across multiple jurisdictions.
Thomson Geer also advises the world’s leading digital asset companies on intellectual property matters for blockchain and emerging technology mandates. We structure defensible IP architectures for tokenised assets, smart contracts and decentralised platforms, aligning patent, copyright and trade secret protection with regulatory, licensing and export controls across multiple jurisdictions. We navigate complex questions around ownership, cross-border enforcement, commercialisation, and liability, ensuring legal clarity and market access for innovation-driven products.
Confidential information and trade secrets are among the most commercially sensitive IP assets an organisation holds, and among the most difficult to protect once disclosure has occurred. Protection depends on the legal frameworks put in place before disclosure.
We advise on the design of confidentiality frameworks in employment, commercial and joint venture contexts, on the protection of source code, proprietary processes and business-critical technical information, and on the pursuit or defence of breach of confidence claims in contested proceedings. We act in Federal Court proceedings involving alleged misappropriation of trade secrets and confidential commercial information, including matters arising from employment transitions and competitor intelligence activity.
Our experience
Fairfax Media and Nine Entertainment – Copyright and moral rights, Bondi Junction stabbing reporting
Acted for Fairfax Digital, Fairfax Media Publications, Nine Network Australia and related entities in copyright infringement proceedings relating to the use of photographs and video in reporting on the Westfield Bondi Junction stabbing attack. The plaintiffs alleged copyright infringement and moral rights breach in the use of images sourced from social media. The case tested fundamental questions about media licensing of social media content and the fair dealing defence in news reporting. Following the filing of written opening submissions, judgment was entered in the defendants' favour.
Human Rights Law Centre and Alliance for Journalists' Freedom – High Court copyright appeal
Acted for the Human Rights Law Centre and the Alliance for Journalists' Freedom in their application to appear as amici curiae in the High Court appeal in Farm Transparency International Limited v Game Meats Company of Australia. The Full Federal Court found a constructive trust existed over copyright in video footage created during a trespass. The High Court appeal, due to be heard in 2026, raises questions with significant implications for journalism, whistleblowing and intellectual property law across the media sector.
Seven Network – Moral rights proceedings, Federal Court
Acting for Seven Network in the defence of Federal Court proceedings brought by an artist alleging breach of moral rights under the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth) in relation to the publication of content featuring the artist's work. The proceedings raise questions with broader significance for media operations given the limited body of Australian jurisprudence on moral rights.
Lorna Jane – Global trade mark portfolio management
Managing the domestic and global trade mark portfolio for Australian activewear company Lorna Jane, covering brand strategy, filing programs, prosecution, renewals, oppositions and removal actions, and enforcement action against infringing conduct on major international e-commerce platforms including TEMU and SHEIN.
Queensland University of Technology – Global licensing of QCAV-4 banana technology
Advising QUT on the global licensing of its QCAV-4 banana, the world's first genetically modified banana approved for commercial production, developed to resist Panama Disease TR4 which threatens the global USD$20 billion banana industry. Work includes negotiating and documenting patent and plant breeders rights licence agreements with US food company Del Monte, advising on field trial obligations, and ongoing advice on the structure and management of the commercialisation framework.
Queensland University of Technology – Biobank collaboration agreement
Advised QUT on the negotiation of a collaboration agreement with a publicly listed biotechnology company governing access to and use of a microbial biobank for commercial and research purposes. Work included drafting template Material Transfer and Licence Agreements to establish legal frameworks for the ongoing scientific and commercial development of the biobank.
Cybersecurity Cooperative Research Centre – IP wind-up, A$100 million research portfolio
Advised the Cybersecurity CRC and its associated company on the management and assignment of IP created across more than 20 research projects on the expiry of the CRC's funding. Work covered the assignment of IP to continuing research and commercialisation entities, the establishment of an IP Trust, related corporate governance and tax issues, wind-up processes and the preparation of Data Custodianship Agreements with total value at A$100 million.
Aerovation Technologies – IP licensing for defence drone technology with BAE Systems
Advising Aerovation Technologies, owner of aeronautical technology company Innovaero, on intellectual property licensing and distribution arrangements with BAE Systems, one of the world's largest defence contractors, for precision loitering munitions drones developed for Australian Army applications. Work covers the negotiation and documentation of IP licensing and distribution agreements for this specialised defence technology.
ADCO Constructions – Trade mark registration and prosecution
Advised ADCO Constructions, one of Australia's oldest construction companies, on trade mark clearance and registration for its new related entity Blue by ADCO. Work covered clearance searches across the register and common law sources, filing strategy, management of an adverse examination report, and negotiation of consent letters with third-party mark owners.