Nicola is a Chartered and European Patent Attorney with particular expertise in freedom-to-operate analysis and advice relating to patents, registered designs and unregistered design rights. She has extensive experience advising clients in the rail, automotive and packaging sectors, particularly in relation to rail infrastructure and rolling stock, automotive braking systems and drivetrains, and food packaging.
She works with a broad range of clients, from multinational organisations and SMEs to individual inventors, helping them to protect, exploit and maximise the value of their intellectual property.
A significant part of Nicola’s practice is dedicated to FTO analysis and strategic advice. She regularly advises on patent, registered design and unregistered design right risks, helping clients understand the IP landscape and navigate product development and commercialisation with confidence.
Nicola has considerable experience in opposition proceedings before the European Patent Office (EPO), as well as advising clients on wider IP strategy. Alongside this contentious work, she manages global patent portfolios and advises on all aspects of patent prosecution, from drafting and filing applications through to grant.
In addition to her core sectors, Nicola has experience working with technologies relating to mechanical latches, medical devices and energy. Her earlier career at an electrical engineering firm provided hands-on experience in the design of fabrication units for power electronics used in the rail industry, giving her valuable commercial and technical insight into her clients’ businesses.
Education & background
Nicola graduated from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne in 2006 with a master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering with honours in Mechanical Engineering. She worked as a mechanical draughtsman at an electrical engineering firm before joining Withers & Rogers as a trainee in 2008, qualifying as a UK patent attorney in 2012 and as a European patent attorney in 2015. In March 2023, she was registered as a representative before the new Unified Patent Court, one of the first European patent attorneys to be entered on the list of UPC representatives.
On a personal note…
Outside work, Nicola’s three sons keep her on her toes. When time allows, she enjoys playing tennis and occasionally dusts off her violin, although opportunities to practise are less frequent than they used to be.
