Dr Claire Gregg
Principal
Patent Attorney
Areas of Expertise/Sector
PatentsPatent Drafting, Filing & ProsecutionPatent Infringement & EnforcementAgribusiness & Food TechnologyChemistryConsumer GoodsFood & BeverageUniversities & Research InstitutionsClaire's practice involves assisting clients to obtain patent protection for innovations in the chemical and pharmaceutical fields, including securing extensions of patent term for pharmaceutical patents. She also conducts patent oppositions and procedural hearings before the Australian and New Zealand Offices, provides advice in relation to patent strategy, validity and infringement, and assists in patent litigation.
Claire began her scientific career at Flinders University studying a Bachelor of Technology (Forensic & Analytical Chemistry) followed by a Bachelor of Science with first class honours, for which she was awarded the University Medal. She then completed a PhD in organic chemistry, focusing on the total synthesis and structural elucidation of complex biologically active natural products. Claire’s research in synthetic organic chemistry continued at the Bio21 Molecular Science and Biotechnology Institute of the University of Melbourne, before she took up a postdoctoral fellowship at Vanderbilt University in the United States. Her postdoctoral research focused primarily on hit-to-lead optimisation of small molecule inhibitors of protein-protein interactions in highly validated cancer targets, as part of a multidisciplinary team in collaboration with the National Cancer Institute.
Claire commenced training as a patent attorney in 2013 at a large patent attorney firm in Sydney, and gained further experience in contentious patent matters at a top-tier commercial law firm before joining Davies Collison Cave in 2020. Claire is a Fellow, Council Member and Director of the Institute of Patent & Trade Mark Attorneys (IPTA), the peak professional body for patent and trade mark attorneys in Australia. She currently co-convenes the Membership and Member Services Committee, and is an active member of the Patents Committee and Media and Communications Committee. She also previously co-convened the Future Directors and Public Relations Committees, and was a founding co-convenor of the “young” IPTA (YIPTA) committee dedicated to engaging and supporting junior members of the patent and trade mark attorney profession.
In addition, Claire is a Director of the Global IP Alliance (GLIPA), which promotes IP education and awareness, diversity and inclusion, and IP ecosystem collaboration worldwide. She is also the founder of IP Encompass, a collaborative partnership between several IP organisation across Australia and New Zealand dedicated to promoting equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging in the Trans-Tasman IP community.
Claire has been awarded the prestigious John McLaren Emmerson QC Essay Prize (formerly the Intellectual Property Society of Australia and New Zealand (IPSANZ) Prize) three times: first prize in 2014 for her essay on the patentability of isolated nucleic acids in Australia; second prize in 2017 for her essay exploring whether Swiss-style claims should be eligible for patent term extension; and first prize in 2019 for her essay on Australia’s controversial ‘best method’ requirement. She has also been awarded a Certificate in Patent Law and Global Public Health “PatentX” from Harvard Law School and the World Intellectual Property Organization.
Qualifications
Bachelor of Technology (Forensic & Analytical Chemistry), Flinders University
Bachelor of Science (Hons), Flinders University
PhD (Organic Chemistry), Flinders University
Masters of Intellectual Property Law, University of Technology, Sydney
Certificate in Patent Law and Global Public Health “PatentX”, Harvard Law School and the World Intellectual Property Organization
Graduate Diploma in Psychology, Monash University
Registered Trans-Tasman Patent Attorney
Registered Australian Trade Marks Attorney
Awards
Selected awards include:
Chancellor’s Commendation (Flinders University), 2002-2004
Max Clark Prize in Science (Flinders University), 2005
Forensic Science South Australia Medal, 2005
Malcolm Thompson Prize for Honours, 2006
University Medal (Flinders University), 2006
Doreen McCarthy Postgraduate Research Bursary, (Australian Federation of University Women South Australia (AFUW-SA)), 2008
Barbara Crase Postgraduate Research Bursary (AFUW-SA), 2010
IPSANZ Essay Prize (first prize), 2014
John McLaren Emmerson QC Essay Prize (second prize), 2017
John McLaren Emmerson QC Essay Prize (first prize), 2019
World IP Review WIPR Leaders 2024
Memberships
Fellow and Council Member: Institute of Patent & Trade Marks Attorneys (IPTA)
Co-convenor: Membership and Members Services Committee and former co-convenor of the Future Directions, Public Relations, and Young IPTA (YIPTA) Committees of IPTA
Director: Global IP Alliance (GLIPA)
Member: International Federation of Intellectual Property Attorneys (FICPI)
Member: Intellectual Property Society of Australia and New Zealand (IPSANZ)
Member: International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI)
Member: Chiefs in Intellectual Property (ChIPs)
Chartered Member: Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI)
Premium Member: Business Chicks