Bird & Bird has appointed Jane Owen to head its IP practice in Australia. Owen, who joins from K&L Gates, where she was a partner, will be based in Sydney. She has over 20 years’ experience in intellectual property, including portfolio establishment, IP strategization, commercialization and enforcement. Her main sector focus is within life sciences, health care and education. Her experience ranges across complex patent infringement/ revocation, trade mark and passing off, design infringement, IP ownership disputes and appeals of decisions made by the Commissioner of Patents and the Registrar of Trade Marks.

She is joined by associates Troy Alexander Gurnett, Shehana Wijesena and Rebecca Currey.