Osborne Clarke makes significant investment in patent litigation and life sciences regulatory capability with major hires in Frankfurt and Munich

Osborne Clarke is delighted to announce that Nora Keßler will join Osborne Clarke as an equity Partner on 16 November 2026, significantly bolstering the IP practice group in Frankfurt. She will be joined by her team members Christoph Palzer as Counsel and Catinca Vidan as an Associate. The team brings a wealth of experience in patent litigation, including complex ongoing proceedings before the Unified Patent Court (UPC), and will bring dedicated IP expertise to the Frankfurt office, which opened to great momentum in September. In addition, Dr Katrin Helle joined Osborne Clarke from White & Case as counsel in the IP/Life Sciences Regulatory team in Munich on 1 November 2026.

These additions make Osborne Clarke’s IP practice one of the most consistently developed patent litigation practices at a German law firm, with a clear sector focus on Life Sciences & Healthcare, TMT and Automotive. The practice includes several representatives authorised to appear before the Unified Patent Court who are handling ongoing UPC proceedings.

Right now, the team comprises Partners Dr Tim Reinhard and Dr Johannes Graf Ballestrem, Counsel Dr Stephan Reisner, Senior Associate Jan-Willem Pruegel and three other Associates. Dr Tim Reinhard, who has been admitted to practise since 1996 and leads the practice Intellectual Property, has advised national and international businesses on patent and competition law for more than two decades. Dr Johannes Graf Ballestrem has specialised in patent law and technology disputes for more than 20 years. After working at a leading international law firm in Düsseldorf, he became a Partner at Osborne Clarke in 2019. He represents clients before civil courts and arbitral tribunals, as well as in validity proceedings before the European Patent Office, the German Federal Patent Court and the German Federal Court of Justice. He is also authorised to represent parties before the UPC.

The result is a fully integrated patent litigation team handling national proceedings, arbitration and UPC proceedings as one offering, with four representatives authorised to appear before the UPC and active proceedings before the Unified Patent Court. The Frankfurt team will also complement the Private Capital and M&A practices at the office and strengthen the firm’s integrated approach to advice in its core sectors of TMT and Life Sciences & Healthcare.

“These new hires continue the strategic expansion in the Disputes practice, within the Life Sciences & Healthcare sector and at our Frankfurt office,” said Nicolas Gabrysch, Managing Partner of Osborne Clarke Germany. “They broaden our expertise in protecting and enforcing intellectual property and strengthen our ability to provide clients with even more comprehensive advice from a single firm.”

Nora Keßler advises domestic and international companies primarily on patent law, with a particular focus on litigation, both nationally and before the UPC. Her clients include pharmaceutical and MedTech companies, as well as automotive suppliers. She began her career at Jones Day in 2004. She was a partner at Klinkert Partners from 2013 before moving to BluePort Legal with the IP team at the end of 2024. Keßler lectures at Frankfurt University and is authorised to represent clients before the Unified Patent Court.

Christoph Palzer advises and represents domestic and international companies on industrial property matters, primarily in patent litigation. He was admitted to practise as a lawyer in 2019 and moved from Klinkert Partners to BluePort Legal as a salaried partner at the end of 2024. Palzer is also authorised to represent clients before the Unified Patent Court and handles ongoing UPC proceedings.

Catinca Vidan also moved from Klinkert Partners to BluePort Legal with the IP team. She studied at Humboldt University in Berlin, specialising in intellectual property law, and completed her legal traineeship in Frankfurt am Main. She has been a fully qualified lawyer since 2024. Her practice focuses on patent law, and she is studying for an LL.M. in Intellectual Property alongside her work.

“With Nora Keßler and her team, we are taking a step forward in our practice group’s focus on patent litigation. This is a deliberate and ambitious development of our national and international strategy: in recent years, we have consistently built a stronger focus on patent litigation, both nationally and before the UPC, and these new hires will now significantly accelerate that progress,” said Dr Tim Reinhard, Head of the IP Practice Group at Osborne Clarke Germany.

Dr Katrin Helle advises domestic and international companies, private equity funds and strategic investors on regulatory compliance, healthtech regulation and digital platforms. She supports innovative healthcare products and digital care models from initial concept through to market launch and reimbursement. Other areas of focus include research projects, AI regulation and liability issues involving intelligent medical devices. She works closely with Osborne Clarke’s patent litigation, data protection and AI experts.

“Dr Katrin Helle brings outstanding expertise in German healthcare regulation. Her exceptional combination of in-depth regulatory knowledge, healthtech expertise and many years of advisory experience is a tremendous addition for our team and our clients – particularly at the vital intersection of regulation and patent litigation in the life sciences sector,” said Andrea Schmoll, Head of the Healthcare & Life Sciences Sector.

Patent litigation: substance, specialisation and a European vision

Osborne Clarke is one of the few law firms able to offer patent litigation expertise at national level and before the UPC through a fully integrated European network. The German expansion forms part of a consistent pan-European growth strategy. In the United Kingdom, the team regularly represents clients in complex life sciences and SEP/FRAND disputes. In 2026, the practices in Spain and the Netherlands each added a partner; in 2024, two partners were promoted in the Belgian IP litigation team. Further hires in France and Italy are planned. This gives clients seeking to protect and enforce patent rights across multiple jurisdictions a consistent strategic approach from a single law firm.