Iain Colville

Practice Areas

Iain is an experienced dispute resolution lawyer, who specialises in disputes involving innovation and technology.

Iain’s focus is upon strategic dispute resolution and finding pragmatic solutions before a dispute turns into a costly problem or crisis, with particular emphasis on the following:

Advanced manufacturing, technology, innovation, outsourcing & logistics

Branding, trade marks and domain names

Creative, Media & Entertainment

He advises a wide range of clients on the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights, including copyright, data & databases, trade secrets and knowhow, product designs, patents, branding and domain names.

Iain also advises on technology, outsourcing and related disputes for suppliers and customers, including the resolution of ‘in life’ disputes, problematic implementation projects, termination issues, licensing audits, and cyber incidents and data breaches.

He also advises on sports regulatory and disciplinary matters (advising both regulators and competitors), and competition law compliance, especially relating to price-fixing.

Iain has particular expertise in making or responding to applications for urgent court orders (injunctions).

Career

Iain read law at the University of Exeter, where he also completed his Diploma in Legal Practice. He trained with Wright Hassall and qualified in 1999.

Experience

Most of Iain's work involves disputes which are confidential to the parties. Here are some recent and notable but anonymised examples of his work:

- Acted in disputes involving former employees and the misuse of confidential information, copyright, database right, trade mark infringement and breach of covenants across many sectors including financial services, technology and manufacturing

- Acted for supplier managing multiple 'in life' disputes in long-term outsourcing contract

- Acted for furniture retailer on defence of registered design dispute before product launch

- Advised major business software resellers in disputes regarding licensing and over-deployment

- Advised on resolution of data breach for software business

- Acted in trade mark oppositions for clients in sectors including sports, technology, retail, automotive, and business services

- Acted for automotive component manufacturer defending trade mark infringement allegations from a major marque

- Acted in High Court proceedings for groundless threats of trade mark infringement

- Acted in patent infringement and validity dispute for telecoms installation supplier

- Acted in domain name disputes before WIPO, for complainants and respondents

- Acted for professional photographers in copyright infringement claims including Sheldon v Daybrook House [2013] EWPCC 26

- Acted in sports disciplinary proceedings and disputes over the eligibility and welfare of competitors