18th Oct 2011
New experts: Elina Heikkilä and Kevin Tung
We are pleased to tell you that our team has been strengthened by two new experts in September. Elina Heikkilä (LL.M.) has joined our trademark attorneys and Kevin Tung (LL.B. & M.Sc. (Chem.)) has joined our Patent team in Chemistry.
Elina Heikkilä (LL.M:) handles trademark, design right and domain name matters. She is also familiar with pre-mapping, protection and contract matters related to intellectual property rights. She acts as European Trademark Attorney and European Design Right Attorney.
Kevin Tung (LL.B. & M.Sc. (Chem.)) works as a patent agent in our chemistry team. He brings Chinese language competence in our company and therefore strengthens our know-how in the Chinese market. Kevin has a degree in law (University of Sheffield) and chemistry (Imperial College, London). Besides working as a patent agent, Kevin also studies in the Master’s Degree Programme in Intellectual Property Law at Hanken.
We warmly welcome both into our team here at BORENIUS & Co!
23rd Jun 2011
Patent Agency to Sue Law Firm over Breach of Contract
Patent agency BORENIUS & Co Oy Ab is to sue the law firm that recently adopted the name Attorneys at Law Borenius Ltd. The reason for taking legal action is the announcement made in May that the law firm formerly known as Borenius & Kemppinen has changed its name to Borenius with the intention turning the name into a strong brand for themselves. According to the patent agency BORENIUS & Co, the law firm is acting in full violation of the contract signed by both parties, in which they agreed to avoid any misleading or confusing use of the name Borenius.
The established name logo used by patent agency BORENIUS & Co:
The confusing logo currently used by Attorneys at Law Borenius Ltd.:
“We see this as highly unethical business practice. In our opinion, especially attorneys should respect joint contracts. We have been operating side by side in mutual understanding for decades, and have also been able to agree on the use of the name. The new situation causes confusion and substantially complicates our business activities”, states the managing director of BORENIUS & Co, Karri Leskinen.
“BORENIUS & Co has been developing its brand in a consistent manner for decades, and especially in the recent years we have been working hard in order to increase our visibility. As a patent agency, we also protect our customers’ brands and immaterial rights. If our brand is violated, we need to defend ourselves”, says managing director Karri Leskinen.
Karri Leskinen considers the name change of the law firm to be regrettable, since the two companies have in the past put plenty of effort into avoiding confusion. In autumn 2003, the companies consensually agreed over the use of domain names. In spring 2008, the companies signed a detailed contract over the use of the name after lengthy negotiations. According to the contract, the parties refrain from any such dominant use of the name Borenius that might be misleading or cause confusion in regard to the contracting parties’ business operations.
Patent agency BORENIUS & Co considers the law firm Borenius & Kemppinen to have acted in violation of the contract by adopting the shortened name Borenius. In their announcement of 13 May 2011, the law firm connects the name change with the brand, stating the following: ”We want to strengthen the Borenius brand and communicate more efficiently about our legal services to clients and partners.” In the patent agency’s view, the risk of confusion is obvious also because the companies’ business activities are close to each other in the field of immaterial rights.
According to the trade register entry, the law firm was established in 1948 under the name Attorneys at law Borenius & Castrén. From 1963 until this spring the company operated under the name Attorneys at law Borenius & Kemppinen.
The patent agency BORENIUS & Co, which was established in 1928, has been operating under the same name constantly throughout its entire history. The commercial name was entered in the trade register in 1932. The company has also purposefully maintained the original logo and its unique font. The new logo published by the law firm in May bears a confusing resemblance to that of BORENIUS & Co. Patent Agency BORENIUS & Co is an international service organization which specializes in intellectual property rights and employs approximately 40 experts.
For more information, contact:
Tel. +358 9 686 68410 Karri Leskinen, Managing Director, BORENIUS & Co
17th May 2011
New Attorneys: Anu Keinänen and Jukka Taskinen
Our team has once again been strengthened by two excellent experts.
Anu Keinänen (M.Sc.) handles the patenting of inventions related to the fields of IT and nanotechnology both in Finland and internationally. She acts as a Registered Patent Attorney in Finland and has also passed the challenging European Patent Attorney qualification examination. In addition, Anu prepares statements concerning surveys and infringement matters. She has previously worked in the IT industry and as a patent attorney. Anu has been employed in Borenius & Co since 11 April 2011.
Jukka Taskinen (Ph.D.) handles the patenting of inventions related to biotechnology, bioinformatics and molecular biology both in Finland and internationally. Jukka also performs freedom-to-operate analyses and novelty searches, as well as prepares statements. Jukka has previously been employed in the National Board of Patents and Registration of Finland and in a patent attorney office, and he has been working in the field since 2006. Jukka has been employed in Borenius & Co since 9 May 2011.
We warmly welcome both into our team here at BORENIUS & Co!
22nd Feb 2011
Patent agency BORENIUS & Co Oy Ab considerably improved its ranking in the Finland’s Best Workplaces 2011 survey, the results of which were published on 11 February 2011. This year, the company was ranked fifth in the small organisations’ category, the general level of which was higher than ever before. Last year, the company participated in the survey for the first time, being ranked No. 14. BORENIUS & CO is by far the best IPR workplace in Finland.
”It feels unbelievably great that we made it into the top five. This is all thanks to our people: together we have been able to create an inspiring workplace” says the Managing Director of BORENIUS & Co, Karri Leskinen.
The success factors of BORENIUS & Co include the innovative atmosphere as well as the considerable attention paid to the wellbeing of the personnel. ”The active attitude of the personnel, their motivation and strong team spirit are evident in their work, meaning that the customers are also able to enjoy the fruits of the good workplace we have created”, Leskinen points out.
”The competition in the small organisations’ category was tougher than ever before, and it has never been more difficult to make it into the top five”, says Panu Luukka, the Managing Director of Great Place to Work® Institute Finland. ”In BORENIUS & Co, the commitment of the management to creating a good workplace is amazing. For them, creating a good workplace is not just one project among others, but a systematic mode of operation”, Luukka explains.
Karri Leskinen thinks that the patent agencies of the future need to be able to sense even the hidden needs of the customers and fulfil them. A service organization can only generate additional value by creating unique experiences with one customer at a time. This requires an extremely innovative organization, in which each and every employee is open for change and committed to the continuous development of the operation.
In Leskinen’s opinion, the basis for the continuous innovation lies in the company culture. The atmosphere in a creative organization is open, honest, safe, and supporting. In addition, the organization also needs to remember to visibly reward new ideas and actions. In a good workplace, the self-esteem of the personnel and the entire organization is healthy. In the spirit of openness and self-criticism it is easier for everyone to detect and accept the need for change. In the future, the need for innovativeness will only increase. BORENIUS & Co has been striving for a positive company culture for years.
”There are still considerable differences between expert organizations. Sometimes the expert is left alone with his work. In the best expert organizations, the employees are urged to participate and encouraged to commit to the company’s goals through active dialogue”, states Panu Luukka. ”Finland’s best workplaces have also been proven to be more innovative than others. In the best workplaces, there is a belief that people want to make things better. In an encouraging atmosphere, people have the courage to try out new things without being afraid of making mistakes – instead, mistakes are something to be learned from”, says Luukka.
21st Jan 2011
We have once again had the pleasure of welcoming new excellent and experienced patent attorneys into our chemistry team and the electrical and mechanical engineering teams on 1 February 2011.
Annika Hakkila (M.Sc. Eng.) is a European Patent Attorney and handles patenting processes both in Finland and internationally. Annika specializes in inventions related to chemistry, and she has wide-ranging experience in the fields of organic and inorganic chemistry and polymer technology. Annika has been employed in the patent field since 1990, working in the industrial sector until 1996 and after that as a patent attorney; she also has experience from other positions in the industrial sector.
Hans Stellberg (M.Sc. Eng., M.Sc. Econ.) handles the patenting of inventions related to electrical and mechanical engineering, especially paper machine and air conditioning technology. He represents his customers as a European Patent Attorney both in Finnish and international patent proceedings. Hans has extensive experience in patent matters – he has been employed in the patent field since 1988.
We warmly welcome both into our team here at BORENIUS & Co.
