Overview
Hon.-Prof. Dr. Henrik Holzapfel advises on all aspects of intellectual property law. He focuses on litigating patents, including the enforcement of patents essential to industry standards (SEPs) and FRAND defenses. He was among the first international attorneys to file lawsuits before the European Unified Patent Court in collaboration with his U.S. colleagues. Henrik counsels on cross-border and multinational litigation strategies, and he advises his clients on negotiating license and R&D agreements, as well as on IP-related indemnification issues in supply chains.
His clients represent a wide variety of industries such as automotive, IT, pharmaceutical, biotech, medical devices, chemicals and engineering.
Henrik has authored multiple publications on intellectual property law and is a honorary professor at the Leuphana University Lüneburg. Henrik is also a regular contributor to McDermott’s IP Update blog.
Results
Henrik advised:
- An American automotive supplier in patent infringement disputes in Europe and the U.S., licensing portfolios of standard-essential patents, and supply chain liability issues
- A Turkish consumer electronics manufacturer in patent litigation, licensing of portfolios of standard-essential patents and supply chain liability issues
- A large German chemical and pharmaceutical company on patent infringement issues
- A German family-owned company extensively on IP strategy and trademark enforcement, including coordination with global enforcement, particularly in Europe, China and the U.S.
- A Spanish family-owned mechanical engineering company in a series of disputes over infringement of multiple patents in Germany and Spain
Recognitions
- Lexology Index: IP, Recommended: Trade Secrets, 2025
- Lexology Index: Thought Leaders: IP, 2025
- Lexology Index: Healthcare & Life Sciences Report, Recommended: Patent Litigation, 2025
- IAM Strategy 300, Global Leaders Guide, 2021-2025
- JUVE Handbuch Wirtschaftskanzleien, Recommended: Patent Law: Patent Litigation, 2017-2025
- Handelsblatt/Best Lawyers™, Germany: Intellectual Property Law, 2025
- Who’s Who Legal, “one of the top-ranked lawyers”: Intellectual Property, 2024
- IP Stars, “Notable Practitioner” in Germany: Intellectual Property, 2024
- IAM Patent 1000, Germany: Silver Band in Infringement and Recommended in Transactions (“Holzapfel is praised by clientele for his ‘professionalism, perseverance, rigour and ability to adapt quickly’”), 2024-2025
- IAM Strategy 300, The World’s Leading IP Strategists, 2021-2024
- The Legal 500 EMEA, Recommended, Germany: Intellectual Property: Patent Litigation (“Henrik Holzapfel is an outstanding and exceptional lawyer in every respect. He is extremely competent, very committed and enjoys our full confidence.”, “Henrik Holzapfel is very active and thinks through all possible scenarios with regard to his clients. His recommendations are very creative.”, “Incredibly responsive to our requests. He’s an experienced IP expert with great knowledge of high-tech.”, “Henrik Holzapfel convinces with outstanding expertise, creative solutions and a high level of customer and service orientation.”), 2020-2024
- Who’s Who Legal, Recommended, Germany: Life Sciences and IP-Trade Secrets, 2024
- IAM Patent 1000, Germany: Silver Band in Infringement and Recommended in Transactions (“Smart and savvy, Holzapfel has experience across virtually the full range of patent services, from infringement and invalidity proceedings to licensing advice.”), 2019-2023
- Thomson Reuters, Stand-out Lawyer – independently rated lawyers, 2023-2024
- The Legal 500 EMEA, Recommended, Germany: Dispute Resolution, 2020-2021
- WirtschaftsWoche, “Top Lawyer” in Germany: patent law, 2020-2021
Community
- European Patent Lawyers Association
- German Association for Intellectual Property Law
