About Caroline Ryan
Caroline has over 20 years’ experience advising on all aspects of intellectual property law and has acted in successful court proceedings involving patent, trade mark and copyright infringement, misuse of confidential information, misleading and deceptive conduct and passing off.
Caroline works with clients from research, technology and brand-based industries, ranging from associations to multi-nationals, and sectors that include pharmaceuticals and healthcare, agrichemicals, energy and resources, media and entertainment, industrials, telecommunications, food, wine and spirits, luxury and consumer goods.
Caroline has conducted and defended urgent applications for preliminary injunctions, ex parte search order applications and expedited substantive proceedings. She works closely with clients to develop strategies for the protection, commercialisation and enforcement of IP rights, and to resolve disputes and manage any associated publicity. Key aspects of Caroline’s approach includes building strong client relationship teams, working within agreed budgets and achieving her client's strategic objectives.
Most recently, Caroline has acted in:
- pharmaceutical patent litigation which included defending Australia’s first preliminary injunction application and expedited infringement and revocation proceedings in relation to a monoclonal antibody biosimilar;
- Federal Court proceedings which included successful trade mark infringement, passing off, and misleading and deceptive conduct allegations and defending a cancellation challenge in relation to the Scotch Whisky certification trade mark;
- two high-profile proceedings in relation to misuse of confidential information and copyright infringement with multi-jurisdictional ex parte applications;
- expedited consumer protection litigation in the Federal Court of Australia in relation to national television, print and online advertising claims;
- the conduct of investigations into products that breach the Australian and New Zealand Food Standards Code and the Australian Consumer Law;
- advising on complex intellectual property protection and registration strategies; and
- advising on trade promotions, product launches and advertising campaigns.
Caroline is a registered trade marks attorney and a member of the Intellectual Property Committee of the Law Council of Australia, the International Wine Law Association (AIDV), Wine Communicators of Australia, The International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (generally known by its French abbreviation, AIPPI), the Intellectual Property Society of Australia and New Zealand (IPSANZ) and the Institute of Patent and Trade Marks Attorneys (IPTA).
Caroline has been recognised by Chambers Asia-Pacific 2024 for Intellectual Property, IAM Patent1000, ranked as a Rising Star in Intellectual Property Law by Doyle's Guide in Australia and has been recognised annually as Australia's Next Generation Intellectual Property Partner by Legal500 from 2017 to 2024 inclusive.