Global IP company expands with acquisition of Leeds competitor

Leeds based intellectual property practice UDL has been acquired by global intellectual property company Murgitroyd as part of its current international expansion.

UDL, founded over 100 years ago, is headquartered in Leeds, with offices in Bristol, Cardiff, London, Milton Keynes, and Newcastle, and specialises in the preparation, filing and prosecution of patents and trademarks, representing clients before the UK, European and international intellectual property offices.

UDL has a total of 80 staff, including twelve partners, and all staff will remain with the expanded business.

The deal creates one of the largest IP practices in the UK and Europe, increasing Murgitroyd’s headcount to 440 and reinforcing its position in the international IP sector.

Gordon Stark, CEO of Murgitroyd said: “This is a significant step forward in enhancing the scale and reach of Murgitroyd in the UK and strengthens our overall presence in Europe.

“UDL has an excellent reputation for advising innovative companies and its focus on legal excellence, deep sector knowledge and strategically focused, pragmantic advice will complement Murgitroyd’s client-centred approach.

“We are leading an emerging trend of consolidation within the IP sector, where scale brings a greater depth of technical and legal expertise and breadth of services as, increasingly, clients require a one stop, multi-sector, multi-service approach in meeting their businesses needs.”

Dr Neil Pawlyn and Alison Simpson, managing partners from UDL added:“UDL can trace its roots back over 100 years, but innovation and development is key to our future, just like our clients. Joining Murgitroyd is an exciting step to the future.

“We have prided ourselves on the quality and depth of expertise we can share. Our strong personal client relationships have been a key differentiator. Joining forces with a company as passionate as we are about innovation and client success is what takes UDL Intellectual Property into the next chapter of our story, within Murgitroyd.

“We’re excited to show our clients the full benefits of being part of the Murgitroyd business.”