Howard Graham Read

Howard leverages his interdisciplinary technical knowledge to protect inventions on behalf of applicants, especially in emerging technologies within chemistry, physics, healthcare, and computing, including AI/ML.
He pragmatically applies his legal expertise and extensive experience before the EPO’s Opposition Divisions and Boards of Appeal to defend rights for patent holders and to challenge third-party rights in opposition cases—also acting as a straw person. Howard combines his knowledge, expertise, and experience to benefit parties in litigation before national courts. He further draws on his business acumen to develop IP and commercialization strategies for innovation-driven companies, including Freedom to Operate (FTO) risk assessments.

Howard is a European Patent Attorney (EQE), European Patent Litigator (representative before the UPC), and a UK Chartered Patent Attorney.
Before entering the patent profession in 2014, he conducted academic research in Japan, delivered offshore and energy engineering projects, and developed analytical instrumentation, particularly for healthcare.

Howard graduated from the University of Cambridge, UK, with an MA in Natural Sciences and a PhD in Metallurgy.
He also holds an MSc in Computing, an LLM (with Distinction) in Intellectual Property Law from the University of Manchester, UK, and a Diploma (with Distinction) in European Patent Litigation from the University of Strasbourg, France.

Howard is fluent in English and Portuguese, having grown up in Brazil, and is proficient in French.

He is a member of FICPI, the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA), and epi.
Howard regularly lectures on developments in patent law and mentors candidates for the European Qualifying Examination (EQEs).