Recognised by the market as a leading patent firm in both prosecution and contentious work, Sapalo Velez Bundang & Bulilan was also strong in trade marks this year with a string of high-profile cases. "This firm is an ideal long-term partner, as it takes the time to learn about your company and its products or services, thus rendering a personalised touch in the firm's advice," says one client. Star trade mark and copyright litigator Augusto Bundang led the team on numerous disputes, which included representing Société des Produits Nestlé against Martin Dy over a Supreme Court decision that considered Dy's Nanny mark to be confusingly similar and an imitation of Nestlé's Nan mark.
Bundang successfully fought for Danilo Caralde Jr against Great White Shark Enterprises for the registration of his trade mark Shark & Logo, having overturned a decision by both the Director of the Bureau of Legal Affairs and the Director General of IPOPhil at the Court of Appeals. "Ignacio Sapalo remains of the most experienced and capable legal professionals in the country," explains an in-house counsel. "As one of the people who developed the current IP Code, and as a previous Director of the Patent Office, his knowledge and skill in interpreting IP laws and applying them to his client's cases is second to none." Other notable cases the firm worked on include declaring CFP Certified Financial Planner as a well-known mark for the Financial Planning Standards Board and obtaining patent registration for Microsoft.