Marc, a partner of the firm, advises on all aspects of intellectual property rights and regularly represents clients in complex patent cases. He has advised and litigated for many of the world’s leading tech companies and has conducted a vast number of cross border proceedings in Europe. He has done so successfully in the fields of telecommunications, consumer electronics, automotive engineering, medical and chemical products and pharmaceuticals. More specifically, Marc has litigated over laser toner cartridges, prosthetic heart valves, tele-health products, lorry brakes, smartphones, graphical user interfaces, chemical products, cutting tools, LED lights and more.

Over the last decade, Marc has also been heavily involved in litigation covering laser toner cartridges and printer consumables with a particular emphasis on the exhaustion of patent rights. Moreover, he has extensive experience in disputes involving FRAND licensing and SEPs including related competition law aspects, as well as the enforcement of software patents. In the latter area, one focus was on the territorial scope of protection of software patents. In this respect, Marc recently managed to obtain a landmark decision for his plaintiff client. Many of his cases include coordinating litigation strategies and cooperating closely with colleagues across Europe and in the US.

Before joining Peterreins Schley in September 2022, Marc was a partner with the international law firm Bird & Bird in Munich.

Marc read law at the University of Münster and holds a Ph.D. in international law as well as an LL.M. in intellectual property law. He is a certified specialist IP lawyer (“Fachanwalt für gewerblichen Rechtsschutz”). During his legal clerkship, he spent several months working for presiding judge Dr. Kühnen at the Düsseldorf Court of Appeal (Patent Senate).

Marc has lectured on patent law at various conferences and upon invitation of IP associations (GRUR, VPP etc.), and has been invited to speak on panels with, among others, the presiding judge of the German Federal Court of Justice and the presiding judge of the Düsseldorf Court of Appeal.

Marc has been touted as an expert for electronics and mechanics by “The Legal 500” in 2022.

REPRESENTATIVE CASES

• Served as lead counsel of a US "tele-health" company against a competitor concerning an online vision test, obtaining a landmark decision on the scope of the territoriality principle in patent law.
• Representation as counsel for an international Japanese company, enforcing patents on laser printer and copier toner delivery technology against the aftermarket. Part of a team of attorneys that won landmark decisions on the issue of exhaustion of patent rights before appellate courts and the German Federal Court of Justice.
• Prepared "freedom-to-operate" opinions for one of the world's leading companies in the chemical industry.
• Part of a team that represented a leading U.S. medical device manufacturer against competitors in multiple patent disputes over prosthetic heart valves and assisted in aligning multinational offense and defense strategies.
• Involved in representing clients in the enforcement of standard-essential patents concerning mobile communications and audio/video coding, including intricacies of the co-called FRAND defense.
• Part of a team that represented a client in the enforcement of a patent against an international automobile manufacturer concerning a neck heater for cabriolets. The dispute concluded with a landmark ruling on "equivalence" before the German Federal Court of Justice for the client.
• Part of a team representing a Japanese automotive supplier in several patent infringement proceedings relating to windshield wiper drives, including participation in parallel nullity proceedings.
• Representation of a US company that manufactures automotive components in patent infringement proceedings against a competitor relating to truck brakes
• Part of a team that enforces multiple patents against a competitor re medical devices (insulin patch pumps)
• Enforcement of multiple patents against a mobile phone manufacturer

PUBLICATIONS

• 1. „Forum Shopping mit amerikanischen Gerichten“ (Forum shopping with american courts), Schüling Verlag, Münster (2008).
• 2. „Die beschränkte Anspruchsfassung im Verletzungsverfahren“ (Claim limitation in infringement proceedings), Mitteilungen der deutschen Patentanwälte 2010, p. 549 et seqq.
• 3. „Der Besichtigungsanspruch bei Verletzung von Geheimhaltungspflichten“ (Inspection claims in case of infringement of confidentiality obligations), in: Praxishandbuch internationaler Know-how-Schutz – 2nd ed., December 2010, (publisher: Wurzer/Kaiser) – co-authored with Dr. Jochen Herr.
• 4. „Schwerer Rückschlag für die europäische Patentgerichtsbarkeit“ (Mayor setback for the European patent jurisdiction), Europäische Zeitschrift für Wirtschaftsrecht (EuZW) 2011, p. 321 et seqq. – co-authored with Dr. Jochen Herr.
• 5. „Speedy patent infringement proceedings in Germany: pros and cons of the go-to courts“, Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice, 2012, Vol. 7, No. 1, p. 44 et seqq. – co-authored with Dr. Jochen Herr.
• 6. „Der kartellrechtliche Zwangslizenzeinwand – Muss das Lizenzangebot einen Kündigungsvorbehalt für den Fall enthalten, dass der Lizenzsucher das Klagepatent angreift?“ (The antitrust compulsory license objection - Must the license offer contain a termination provision in the event that the license applicant attacks the plaintiff's patent?), Mitteilungen der deutschen Patentanwälte 2011, p. 492 et seqq.
• 7. „Kosten einer Ausweichtechnik als Vollstreckungsschaden?“ (Costs of a workaround as enforcement damage?), Mitteilungen der deutschen Patentanwälte 2013, p. 530 et seqq.
• 8. „Hat der Stoffschutz Löcher?“ (Does the protection of substances has exemptions?), GRUR 2015, p. 35 et seqq. – co-authored with Dr. Thomas Kühnen.
• 9. Urteilsanmerkung zum BGH-Urteil „Wärmetauscher“ (decision of May 10, 2016 – X ZR 114/13) (Annotation to the Federal Supreme Court’s decision „heat exchanger“), Mitteilungen der deutschen Patentanwälte 2016, p. 446 et seqq. – co-authored with Boris Kreye and Jochen Kamlah.
• 10. „Die Reichweite der Registervermutung bei nicht beurkundeten Zwischenerwerben im Patentrecht“ (The scope of the presumption of the patent register in the case of non-certificated interim acquisitions in patent law), GRUR 2016, p. 1126 et seqq.
• 11. „Vorbereitung und Durchführung eines Patentverletzungsverfahrens: Strategie und Haftungsrisiken (Teil 1)“, (Preparing and conducting patent infringement proceedings – strategy and risks (part 1)), GRUR-Prax 2018, p. 513 et seqq. – co-authored with Thomas Kühnen.
• 12. „Vorbereitung und Durchführung eines Patentverletzungsverfahrens: Strategie und Haftungsrisiken (Teil 2)“ (Preparing and conducting patent infringement proceedings – strategy and risks (part 2)), GRUR-Prax 2018, p. 544 et seqq. – co-authored with Dr. Thomas Kühnen.
• 13. „Vorbereitung und Durchführung eines Patentverletzungsverfahrens: Strategie und Haftungsrisiken (Teil 3)“ (Preparing and conducting patent infringement proceedings – strategy and risks (part 3)), GRUR-Prax 2018, p. 569 et seqq. – co-authored with Thomas Kühnen.
• 14. Rezension „Kühnen, Handbuch der Patentverletzung, 11. Aufl.“ (Evaluation of „Kühnen, handbook of patent infringement, 11th ed.“), Mitteilungen der deutschen Patentanwälte 2019, p. 96.
• 15. Comments on the decision of the Court of Appeals Munich, decision of December 12, 2019 - 6 U 5042/19 ("Confirmation of a temporary injunction in the dispute about an Anti-Anti-Suit Injunction"), GRUR-Prax, 2020, p. 47.
• 16. Aktuelle Rechtsprechung der Landgerichte und Oberlandesgerichte in Patentverletzungsverfahren („Current case law of the District Courts and the Courts of Appeal in patent infringement cases”), VPP Rundbrief 2020 (Nr. 4), S. 115 ff.
• 17. Anmerkung zum BGH-Beschluss „Gruppierungssystem“ (Annotation to the Federal Supreme Court’s order „grouping system”) (court order of February 23, 2021 – X ZB 1/18 (BPatG), GRUR-RS 2021, 11838.
• 18. Anmerkung zum BGH-Urteil „Bediengerät für Spiele“ (Annotation to the Federal Supreme Court decision „control unit for games”) (decision of August 03, 2021 – X ZR 71/19), GRUR-Prax, 2021, 635.
• 19. Anmerkung zum BGH-Urteil “Abgrenzung eines Merkmals des Patentanspruchs von einer in der Beschreibung ausgeführten Entgegenhaltung”Claim limitation based on prior art” (decision of April 04, 2022 – X ZR 71/19)
• 20. Anmerkungen zum OLG Düsseldorf Urteil „gewünschter Zeitschlitz“ („desired timeslot“) (decision of April 20, 2023 – 2 U 78/18), GRUR-RS 2023, 9638.
• 21. Festschriftbeitrag für Prof. Dr. Kühnen „Der Verschuldensmaßstab bei der Klagekonzentration“ („The degree of culpability and the concentration principle“)

PRESENTATIONS

• 1. „Die Reichweite der Registervermutung bei nicht beurkundeten Zwischenerwerben im Patentrecht“ (The scope of the presumption of the register in the case of non-certificated interim acquisitions in patent law), Haus der Universität Düsseldorf, November 25, 2015.
• 2. „Die Reichweite der Registervermutung im Patentrecht nach ‚Fräsverfahren‘“ (The scope of the presumption of the register in patent law after ‚milling method‘), GRUR-Bezirksgruppe Bayern, Munich, April 28, 2016.
• 3. „Aktuelle Fragen bei einstweiligen Verfügungen im Patentrecht“ (Current issues re preliminary injunctions in patent law), 30th Freiberger Seminar zu ‚Praxis des Gewerblichen Rechtsschutzes‘, Freiberg, June 23, 2016.
• 4. „Aktuelle Fragen bei einstweiligen Verfügungen im Patentrecht“ (Current questions re preliminary injunctions in patent law), VPP-Bezirksgruppe Mitte West, Cologne, September 22, 2016.
• 5. „Erschöpfung des Patentrechts im Zusammenhang mit dem Besonderen Mechanismus – Anwendungsbeispiele und aktuelle Rechtsprechung“ (Exhaustion of patent law in the context of the Special Mechanism - examples and current case law), VPP-Bezirksgruppe Mitte-Süd, Darmstadt, October 11, 2016.
• 6. „Vorbereitung und Durchführung eines Patentverletzungsverfahrens – Strategien und Haftungsrisiken“ (Preparing and conducting patent infringement proceedings – strategy and risks), VPP-Bezirksgruppe Süd-Ost, Erlangen, April 11, 2018.
• 7. „Vorbereitung und Durchführung eines Patentverletzungsverfahrens – Strategien und Haftungsrisiken“ (Preparing and conducting patent infringement proceedings – strategy and risks), VPP-Bezirksgruppe Nord-Ost, Berlin, May 14, 2018.
• 8. „Vorbereitung und Durchführung eines Patentverletzungsverfahrens – Strategien und Haftungsrisiken“ (Preparing and conducting patent infringement proceedings – strategy and risks, VPP-Bezirksgruppe Mitte, Kronberg, August 28, 2018.
• 9. „Seminar zum Patentverletzungsverfahren“ (Seminar on patent infringement proceedings), VPP-Bezirksgruppe Mitte-Süd, Ludwigshafen, March 20, 2019.
• 10. „Aktuelle Rechtsprechung der Landgerichte und Oberlandesgerichte in Patentverletzungsverfahren“ (Recent case law of the District Courts and Courts of Appeals in patent infringement proceedings), VPP-Bezirksgruppe Mitte (online event), November 10, 2020.
• 11. „Durchsetzung von Verfahrensansprüchen mit teilweisem Auslandsbezug“ (Enforcement of method claims when specific features are fulfilled abroad), VPP-Bezirksgruppe Mitte-Süd (online event), December 08, 2020.
• 12. „Preparing and conducting patent infringement proceedings in Germany – strategy and liability risks”, Webinar of EIRMA - European Industrial Research Management Association, June 02, 2021.
• 13. “Unitary Patent System and Unified Patent Court are Coming in 2022”, Webinar of EIRMA - European Industrial Research Management Association, April 07, 2022.
• 14. “Unified Patent Court – How Should Chinese Companies Respond?” –Seminar at Bavaria Business Auditorium, May 25, 2022.
• 15. „Aktuelle Rechtsprechung der Verletzungs- und Rechtsbestandsinstanzen in Patentsachen“ (Recent case law of patent courts in infringement and invalidity proceedings), VPP-Bezirksgruppe Mitte-Süd (online event), December 6, 2022.
• 16. „Prozessstrategien im Patentverletzungsverfahren im Ersatz- und Verschleißteilgeschäft“ (Litigation strategies in patent infringement proceedings in the spare and wear parts business), VPP-Bezirksgruppe Süd-Ost, June 21, 2023.