About John
Nothing excites me more than to assist innovative companies in developing an aligned patent portfolio and strategy which allows them to effectively exploit a technology niche, and achieve their commercial objectives both locally and globally.
John is the Managing Director and a Principal of FPA. He is a registered patent attorney in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, and has extensive international experience in the drafting and prosecution of patent and design applications, as well as in most other aspects of patent law.
John provides strategic advice on building and managing patent portfolios, and on creating readily enforceable patent rights for a broad base of local and foreign multinational clients. John also has a busy oppositions practice and has been involved in a number of major patent litigation cases representing large multinational clients.
John has a strong technical background in electrical and electronic engineering, as well as mechanical engineering, and supports clients in technical areas such as:
- Mobile devices, including smartphones and tablets and related GUI and touchscreen technology
- Photonics, optical components and fibre optic networks
- DSP applications including sound and image processing technology
- Software, internet and business process related patent applications in various technical areas, including digital rights management
- Clean energy, including concentrated solar power
- Electric motors and generators
- Quantum computing
- Autonomous vehicle technology
John is also experienced with many power electronics inventions, electronic identification and tracking systems and associated transponders, telecommunications networks, electronic detonators, electronic control and detection systems and MEMS devices. He has patented and advised on many different types of medical devices and systems, including medical/cochlear implants, diagnostic equipment and intravenous devices, such as IV catheters.
John has successfully opposed and defended patent applications in opposition proceedings before the Australian Patent Office, including in the areas of financial transaction systems, process engineering, and gaming systems and platforms.
John qualified as a solicitor and patent attorney in 1990 at a boutique firm in South Africa, where he was involved in the drafting and prosecution of local and foreign patent applications, opinion work, IP strategy advice and patent litigation. In 2001, John joined FPA and later became the Managing Director in 2021.
John has lectured specification drafting for the Masters of IP course at the University of Technology in Sydney.
In addition to John’s technical qualifications and memberships, he is also a Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and has undertaken the Company Directors Course, and has completed the Leading Professional Services Firms course at Harvard Business School in June 2022.
Awards
- Named as a ‘Patent Star’ by IP Star, Managing Intellectual Property, 2015-2024
- Ranked as a ‘Highly Recommended Individual’ by IAM Patent 1000, 2014-2024
Qualifications
- Bachelor of Science (Electrical and Electronic Engineering), University of Cape Town
- Baccalaureus Procurationis, University of South Africa
- Registered Trans-Tasman Patent Attorney
- Qualified South African Patent Attorney
Memberships
- Fellow, Institute of Patent & Trade Mark Attorneys of Australia (IPTA)
- International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property
- American Intellectual Property Law Association
Intellectual Property Society Australia and New Zealand (former Vice-President) - Intellectual Property Owners Association
- The International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI)
