About Me
As a registered Australian patent and trademark attorney and a registered New Zealand patent attorney I am privileged to be able to work with a wide range of clever and innovative clients.
Having qualified with a mechanical engineering degree in 1988 at the University of Natal in South Africa, my venture into engineering as a living did not last long. In 1989, I began part time legal studies at UNISA with the goal of becoming a patent attorney.
My intellectual property career started in South Africa when I joined that country's largest IP firm, Adams & Adams, with the admonition that I was in for a tough time. Indeed it was, but I managed to qualify there as an attorney (solicitor) and as a patent and trademark attorney.
Up until 1999, when my wife and I decided to move to Australia, I was based in Johannesburg. Naturally, I ended up with a large number of clients in the mining and related industries, but also managed to work with some other interesting companies and individuals in a number of different industries.
From my arrival here in 1999, until early in 2001, I was fortunate enough to be employed by Pizzeys Patent and Trade Mark attorneys, where I qualified to practice in Australia as a patent and trademark attorney. During this time, I began to gain experience in the software field mainly out of interest but also so that I could better serve my clients in this rapidly growing field.
From 2001 to 2008, the firm of Eagar & Buck grew out of Michael Buck, Kerry Newcomb and I leaving Pizzeys to form a partnership. Some of the highlights during that time include a presentation to the American Bar Association (ABA) Division of Intellectual Property at their annual summer conference in Boston. The presentation covered hot topics in Australian patent practice, with a special emphasis on software and business methods. Another highlight was a presentation that I made to a number of large firms in Silicon Valley, including IBM and Google. I have since had the opportunity to deliver another paper to the ABA in April 2009, for which I am grateful.
However, the most enjoyable aspect of Eagar & Buck was the opportunity we had to work with dynamic and innovative individuals and companies directly and without being influenced by billing targets and impersonal procedures. Unfortunately, we found the administrative burden quite demanding and, instead of cutting staff, we decided to merge with Cullen & Co. (now Cullens).
The rewarding nature of giving personal and direct service drove my decision to practice as a sole practitioner. My goal is to provide my clients with a sense of security in the knowledge that their intellectual property is properly and appropriately registered and that I am personally available.
