Heather McCann

Partner, European Patent Attorney
London
European Patent Litigator

Heather is regularly cited in the Legal 500, Chambers & Partners and IAM Patent 1000 guides as a leading practitioner. When permitted to travel she divides her time between EIP's offices in London and the US, from where she regularly advises Silicon Valley tech start-ups, SMEs and US law firms on European patent filing and prosecution strategy.

Heather joined EIP in 2002 from the IP Division of a major telecoms company. She has significant experience in drafting and prosecuting patent applications for innovation relating to the Internet of Things, security, computer systems and architecture, desktop applications, signal processing, wireless modem technologies, a range of networking topologies and protocols, electronic messaging systems and electronic trading systems. She has represented clients at opposition and appeal proceedings at the EPO on numerous occasions, and provides support on patent litigation matters, worldwide. Heather has extensive experience of developing, communicating and implementing IP strategies.

Heather has a PhD in Combustion and Fluid Dynamics, and a Bachelors Degree in Engineering, both from Imperial College, London.

Experience

  • Providing pre-action and ongoing technical support in relation to validity and infringement of certain standard essential patents as part of representing Conversant Wireless in its successful Supreme Court proceedings against Huawei and ZTE.
  • Unwired Planet vs. Apple (Northern District of California). Acted for patent owner as global prosecution counsel in relation to post-grant proceedings
  • Unwired Planet vs. Google (District of Nevada). Acted for patent owner as global prosecution counsel in relation to post-grant proceedings
  • Unwired Planet vs. Apple, RIM (International Trade Commission, Washington DC). Acted for patent owner as patent counsel
  • Visto vs. Research in Motion. Acted for patent owner in international litigation relating to email synchronization technology, resulting in a $267.5 million settlement in favour of patent owner
  • Good Technology Corporation. Global lead prosecution counsel 2009-2016

Education and qualifications

  • European Patent Attorney
  • UK Chartered Patent Attorney
  • 1997
    PhD in Combustion and Fluid Dynamics, Imperial College, London
  • 1993
    Bachelors Degree in Engineering, Imperial College, London

Career history

  • 2002 — present
    Partner, EIP
  • 1999 — 2002
    Patent Attorney, British Telecoms
  • 1998 — 1999
    Trainee Patent Attorney, BAE Systems