UK Trade Mark and Design Attorney
BA, CITMA, High Courts Litigation Certificate in Intellectual Property
Margaret has been a trade mark specialist in private practice since 1992. She is a registered UK and European trade mark and design attorney and a member of the Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys. Margaret has considerable experience in advising a broad range of clients, including multinational corporations, in the development, management, exploitation, protection and enforcement of their trade mark portfolios. She is consistently recommended in The Legal 500 and has been commended for her “hands-on role” in managing trade mark work, and heading up a “well organised, reliable and responsive” team (2021). She has also been praised for possessing the “rare qualities of reasonableness and level-headedness as a litigator”, and described as “hardworking, sound, and has common sense and good presentation skills.” Margaret has been consistently ranked in the WTR 1000, a directory of the world’s leading trade mark professionals, where she is noted for being a “a trade mark encyclopaedia”, as well as someone who is “very pragmatic and will always provide the full picture prior to assisting in the decision making process.” She also features as a ‘Trade Mark Star’ in the latest edition of Managing IP’s IP STARS, a ranking Margaret has held consecutively for the last few years.
Expertise
Margaret has over two decades of experience in trade mark protection and an impressive track record of representing a diverse range of clients, including multinational corporations, in the development, management and protection of their trade mark portfolios. In particular, Margaret has extensive experience of filing and prosecuting trade mark and design applications in many jurisdictions, and managing large portfolios of trade marks on behalf of her clients. Margaret’s background as a commercial solicitor (non-practising), as well as her Higher Courts Litigation Certificate in Intellectual Property, is invaluable in her conduct of contentious intellectual property proceedings and in negotiating the settlement of such proceedings. Her role includes advising on brand name selection and clearance, trade mark prosecution and a full range of contentious work including oppositions, cancellation actions, domain name UDRP proceedings and litigation in court. She routinely advises on the settlement of contentious proceedings and drafts any necessary co-existence/delimitation agreements. A member of the team that secured one of the first pan-European trade mark injunctions for infringement of a community trade mark (as it was then called), Margaret has successfully protected the interests of her clients in proceedings in the courts. She also provides regular intellectual property (IP) seminars and training for large multinational clients to help improve IP awareness amongst their marketing and legal teams.
Margaret successfully defended British Gas against a £30m claim in Meter tech v British Gas. To read more about the case please click here.
Academic
Margaret has an honours degree in law from Nottingham Trent University. She originally qualified as a solicitor in 1987, before going on to qualify as a UK and European trade mark and design attorney.
Recent work
Swatchball (Case T-71/14)
Currently acting as lead partner in one IPEC case and one High Court case.
L.A. Motorcycles and Bar & Shield Device (Opposition No. B2281585)
Just Cool
Settlement of High Court infringement action on the 1st day of the trial in March 2015.
Memberships & organisations
Margaret is a member of the Chartered Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys (CITMA).
Sectors
Awards
“Margaret Arnott’s experience and guidance is valued.”
“Margaret is practically a trade mark encyclopaedia. She can answer any question that a client may have and knows how to get great results. Margaret is also very pragmatic and will always provide the full picture prior to assisting in the decision making process.”
“Margaret Arnott is clearly a deeply experienced and highly knowledgeable trade mark attorney.”
“Margaret Arnott only ever provides the most pragmatic and sensible advice, but is ready to bring out a creative option when her clients require. She is a mastermind of large-scale filing programmes and a reliable performer in contentious proceedings.”
Praised to the rafters, Arnott is a 20-year partner at the firm with “profound knowledge of the trademarking process and the ability to lead negotiations effortlessly”.
“She sets a benchmark for the IP legal world that is difficult to beat.”
“Margaret Arnott has played a hands-on role in managing all of our trade mark work, and promptly makes herself available to discuss matters and management issues. She has quickly adapted the way her team works to meet our operational requirements and manage costs.”
“Margaret explains everything in plain English, which makes decision-making much more straightforward.”
“The team under Margaret Arnott’s lead are well organised, reliable and responsive. We value their timely reminders and also that they are always keen to provide advice and support.”
“I have worked with the Margaret and the Mathys & Squire trade mark team since I joined Rigby & Peller. I find them to be highly responsive, and provide insightful commercial advice without pushing a point of view. I would not hesitate to recommend them.”
Margaret’s “incisive and pragmatic approach, combined with her strong grasp of current market trends, saves clients time and money”.
“Reasonable and level-headed, Margaret is adept at curtailing situations in which adrenaline and emotions are running high.”
“She is a privilege to work with. A true accelerator of businesses, she is knowledgeable, approachable and proactive.”
“We have been working with Margaret for over fifteen years, providing a trade mark registration and monitoring service. They are always available and very responsive whenever we need their support. The team are open, friendly and easy to work with, and it always feels like they are fighting our corner.”
Margaret is praised for understanding “even the most complex of legal issues and takes away the stress associated with the important task of protecting trademarks.”
“She puts the interests of her clients first at all times and provides tailored advice and practical strategies that are very cost effective. She takes care of matters personally so you feel well-cared for at all times.”
Margaret has been commended for possessing the “rare qualities of reasonableness and level-headedness as a litigator”, and described as “hardworking, sound, and has common sense and good presentation skills”.
“Mathys & Squire have been key to the development of Xaar’s IP portfolio since the late 1980s and have supported us through a number of changes in business focus in an increasingly competitive space. The support and advice we receive from their dedicated team is well considered and takes into account the commercial imperatives of our business. We appreciate the quality of the legal and technical knowledge of the Mathys & Squire team, and their pragmatic and flexible approach.”
“Mathys & Squire are a highly professional organisation with the scale and breadth of capability we need to handle our global portfolio. I have found Margaret Arnott to be exceptionally diligent and good at her job. She has a good understanding not only of the trade mark areas which we work in, but also of deeply technical aspects of the technology, picking out the nuances and understanding where we fit in the marketplace.”
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