Cordelia leads the Intellectual Property team at Acuity Law.

She began her career at London media and entertainment firm, Harbottle & Lewis LLP, in 2005 where she trained and practised for 7 years. During that time, she worked for many high profile clients including LucasFilm Limited in its high-profile Star Wars copyright infringement case for 4 years from its inception through to success at the Supreme Court (Lucasfilm Ltd & Ors v Ainsworth & Anor [2011] UKSC 39).  She held  in-house legal counsel roles for IP rich clients such as Virgin Atlantic Airways, Argus Media and the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG). These roles taught her to apply her legal acumen within the commercial needs of her clients; something that she continues and strives to do with all of her clients.

In October 2015, she joined Maple & Black Law as its first and only IP lawyer. Over the following years, she built the IP practice single handedly until the firm merged with Acuity Law in 2018.  She remains based in London working from Acuity’s London office in Soho.

Cordelia has extensive expertise advising on a wide range of both contentious and non-contentious IP matters.  She helps clients protect and monetise their IP assets whether that is devising the most cost effective and competitive global brand protection strategies, helping clients to exploit their rights or prosecuting infringers either through Tribunal proceedings at the UK and EU Intellectual Property Offices or working with our Dispute Resolution Team in bringing or defending intellectual property rights actions through the Courts. 

Cordelia has a hands-on approach and advises individual and business clients of all sizes from a range of sectors. These include the media, entertainment, and creative industries, with a focus on fashion, art and publishing, health and fitness, communications, and technology, both in the UK and cross-border.

Cordelia’s extensive experience, tenacity and personability, not to mention her ability to achieve the very best for her clients, is recognised in her loyal client following.

*Cordelia Payne is a Consultant at Acuity Law working on a self-employed basis*

Advising a high-profile alcohol brand in bringing a passing off claim against a competitor. The work extended to Court proceedings and included an application for an injunction in the High Court. As a result, the case resulted in settlement at the stage of disclosure.

Advising a fashion brand in a design right dispute with a major PLC. This led to a favourable settlement offer to our client shortly before us issuing proceedings.

Acting for REDA Industrial Materials FZE, an international chemical distribution company based in Dubai, in relation to its rapidly increasing brand portfolio. This includes advising in relation to three EU trade mark oppositions at the EUIPO. In addition, we handled several trade mark filings on the client’s behalf.

Acting for world-leading healthcare data organisation Pharmatelligence Limited on the launch of a branded product, LivingstoneIQ. This involved advising in relation to its international launch, including negotiations with another big healthcare company and earlier rightsholder, Sensyne Health. That earlier rightsholder posed a threat to registration and use in the US, but the client ultimately secured the right to register and use the brand there.

Advising expanding dentistry business Portman Healthcare Limited in relation to a variety of intellectual property matters. These included brand protection, third-party conflicts and IP matters in acquisition agreements.

Advising an international furniture design and homeware brand on its collaboration with the V&A museum in London for the sale of licensed goods as part of one of the museum’s exhibitions. We also assisted with setting up a new digital platform to find emerging designers.

Successfully defending a complaint filed by a competitor at ICANN against a peer-to-peer Bitcoin and Altcoin trading platform. for the transfer of a domain name. The claim sought the transfer of a domain name.

Advising a high-profile chain of fitness studios on international brand protection strategy. This involved making a large number of trade mark filings in the UK, EU, Australia and other territories. The work also included negotiating co-existence agreements in Spain and the US, making appeals to the EUIPO and preparing a strategy to prevent a multimillion dollar US company with a similar brand from entering the UK market.

Advising an employee experience and rewards platform across a range of IP and brand protection matters. The work included defending trade mark opposition proceedings brought by eBay Inc.

Successfully defending a claim for trade mark infringement and passing off brought by the Soho House group. The dispute related to a client’s new restaurant in Soho.

• UK, EU and international trade mark filings and prosecutions
• Brand protection strategy
• Commercial contracts with an IP focus
• Licences and assignments of intellectual property rights
• Intellectual property disputes at the UKIPO, EUIPO, IPEC and High Court
• Domain name registration and disputes