Chris Williams

Full Profile

Chris specialises in media, technology, and intellectual property disputes both in court and arbitration.  His practice involves defamation, reputation management, patent, trade mark, design rights, copyright, confidential information, trade secrets and passing off.

Chris has a wealth of experience in crisis management and brand protection. He prefers to tackle issues using a mix of legal and non-legal solutions, in a manner which best protects the client’s interests.

Chris is very active in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) space and frequently provides seminars and training on the intersection of law and AI.

Chris' clients are predominantly technology-focused and innovative, continually seeking to develop, exploit and enforce their IP rights.  Chris is experienced in running and coordinating litigation and arbitration proceedings across several jurisdictions and regularly applies for and defends urgent court applications including applications for injunctive relief. Chris also provides reputational advice to brand owners in the event of a crisis. 

Chris has been recommended in the following areas in the latest Legal 500 rankings (2024):

• International Arbitration
• Intellectual Property; Patents (Contentious and Non-contentious),
• Intellectual Property; Trade marks, Copyright & Design.

Experience

• Successfully defending a large global construction company in an arbitration under the Swiss Rules of International Arbitration involving a range of contractual and intellectual property issues, across multiple jurisdictions.
• Acting on behalf of a US based technology company in an ICC arbitration involving a software dispute.
• Working with specialists across multiple jurisdictions to bring an end to a vicious smear campaign to a corporate client which was launched by one of its competitors.
• Representing a well-known company in relation to its defamation complaint against a disgruntled employee.
• Advising numerous clients in the shipping industry on various intellectual property matters including registered and unregistered design rights.
• Representing an e-commerce platform in a full range of intellectual property and domain name disputes.
• Acting for several banks in various IP matters including the misuse of confidential information by contractors, domain name disputes, trade mark oppositions and trade mark infringement actions.
• Representing a university spin-out in a dispute concerning patent ownership and copyright.
• Successfully defending a software company in a dispute concerning the alleged misuse of confidential information, trade secrets and copyright.
• Acting for an airline in a number of trade mark and confidential information cases. 
• Acting for a US-based technology client in complex multi-level trade mark opposition proceedings involving overlapping UK and EU cases.
• Representing a client within the cosmetic beauty industry in a range of trade mark and copyright matters including ensuring the withdrawal of competitors' trade mark applications. 
• Successfully secured the invalidation of a range of competitors trade marks on behalf of a client in the cosmetic dental industry.
• Acting for a software developer in a complex copyright infringement, breach of contract and confidential information claim which resulted in a lengthy trial in the Chancery Division of the High Court.