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“Max has a superb knowledge of the law and how to apply it practically”, while “Juliane perfectly combines the world of IP law with transactions law – a unique talent, especially in international projects”.

Kletzer is a holistic counsellor and a fine choice for all intricate IP mandates. He also recently linked up with Mosing and Messner to aid Österreichische Post AG, a former Austrian monopolist and major state-owned company, with all aspects of its technology transfer, from strategic guidance to licensing and monetisation.

Schnider is extremely knowledgeable and can readily understand even the most intricate technical topics […]

The talent does not stop there though, with Alexander Schnider, Constantin Kletzer, Max Mosing and Juliane Messner all bringing their expertise to the mix. “It’s impressive how seamlessly the GEISTWERT partners work together. They truly act as a team and, most remarkably, they always select the best person for the job, ensuring their clients receive a personal and tailored service.” Of late, Schultes, Schnider and Kletzer represented TeleTan in an infringement claim against the bank Six Payment Systems for using TeleTan’s patented authentication system on their online payment authorisation platform.

First name on the roster Rainer Schultes also earns glowing feedback: “Rainer is an exceptional litigator when it comes to patent disputes. He is straightforward, intelligent and never short of a plan. His specific strength stems not only from his extraordinary grasp of patent law and relevant case law, but also from his comprehensive understanding of the pharmaceutical industry’s environment and overall business aims and strategy.”

“The IP community in Austria is a small but impressive one and GEISTWERT stands out among the top-tier firms. Its team of outstanding patent litigators across all technical domains are the go-to for strategic IP advice, patent litigation and transactional support. The overall experience of working with them is phenomenal.”

This Viennese boutique has established itself as an authoritative IP outfit, particularly in litigation. It has long been a market leader in soft IP. In patent law, the practice led by Constantin Kletzer and Rainer Schultes has become the most persistent challenger to the market-leading firm Gassauer-Fleissner, thanks to its enormous presence in patent litigation. The fact that competitor Schwarz Schönherr, which had been weakened following a partner departure, was unable to keep pace with Geistwert was a further contributing factor. Like Gassauer-Fleissner, Geistwert is also one of the best-known Austrian patent litigation firms internationally. If Austrian issues arise at the UPC, both firms can depend upon being the first point of contact for litigation here, especially if IP teams without a local presence require cooperation partners.

Nevertheless, this is by no means a foregone conclusion and Geistwert would be wise to seek close cooperation with IP law firms in Europe. […] However, the team’s work in its most prominent case for Tele Tan against Mastercard concerning authentication procedures in online banking proves that the partners can handle international cases on the plaintiff side.

The firm’s trademark and unfair competition lawyers are often involved in cases for international clients, such as a German carmaker or a pharmaceutical company. Their best-known IP client with international reach is probably the Austrian beverage manufacturer Red Bull. The firm represents the company in IP litigation, as well as copyright, media and data protection law. IP advice goes hand in hand with IT and data protection advice due to the many international social media groups and streaming providers as clients.

The firm owes its success not only to its consistent focus on IP and IT law issues, but also to its partner-centric approach. The new challenges posed by the UPC will show whether this concept is sustainable in the long term or will slow down the dynamic development.

Strengths

Consistent focus on IP issues with partner-centric approach; infringement litigation concerning pharma patents.

Recommended individuals

Constantin Kletzer (“excellent litigator who has seen it all”, competitor), Rainer Schultes (“well versed in patent litigation, especially pharma patents”, “the firm is a powerhouse in Austrian IP and Schultes is at the forefront”, competitors)

‘Juliane Messner is the “commercial wonder woman” in the GEISTWERT team.‘

‘Max Mosing – he isn’t just a lawyer, but also understands the aspects beyond the legal stuff. It is tremendously helpful in negotiations.‘’

GEISTWERT‘s five-strong team comprising Constantin Kletzer, Juliane Messner, Max Mosing, Alexander Schnider and Rainer Schultes offers comprehensive IP services. On the contentious side, this includes representing clients in patent, trade mark and copyright matters before the Austrian and European courts and IP offices. The team is well versed in handling commercial IP matters, advising a number of household names on the management of their global IP portfolios and performing due diligence prior to corporate transactions or investments. Clients from sectors as diverse as the gaming, entertainment, and food and beverage industries routinely instruct the practice on complex IP issues.

‘The GEISTWERT team is without any doubt the creme de la creme of IP in Austria: landmark cases, outstanding clients, including many state-owned and world leading companies from Austria, and they still take care of start-ups and smaller companies. Their teamwork is great and you can see that they really do have fun doing their job and going the extra mile.’