Wrays, one of Australia’s largest independent intellectual property firms, today announced that it has made two new legal appointments in its Perth and Sydney offices to add additional legal and technical expertise and support its continued growth nationwide.
Guy Provan has joined as a Principal in Wrays’ Perth office, and brings significant expertise in intellectual property litigation, patents, copyright, and commercialisation, as well as building and growing legal teams. Dr Simon Weisman will be a senior associate in the life sciences and biotechnology practice in Wrays’ Sydney office, with a mandate to help with the continued expansion of Wrays’ practice in this area on the east coast.
Both appointments are effective as of Monday 6 February.
Chief executive officer Frank Hurley says the appointments are indicative of Wrays’ commitment to further growth nationwide and meeting client demands in these practice areas.
“This is an exciting time for our firm. We have a clear long-term growth strategy that we are successfully executing against, and these key hires are part of that plan,” said Mr Hurley. “I’m very impressed with the calibre of Guy and Simon and believe they will be instrumental in helping further build our legal and litigation expertise to meet client demand nationwide.
“We continue to grow, and in particular, we are looking to bring on board additional talent to work in our life sciences practice.”
Guy Provan, Principal
Mr Provan has been practicing for more than 25 years and is well established and respected in the Perth market.
His specialities include litigation and dispute resolution, enforcement of intellectual property rights, IP licensing and commercialisation, IT and internet agreements, and general IP advice. He regularly represents clients in legal actions particularly in the Federal Court in Perth and interstate. His clients have ranged from individual inventors to large corporates.
“I’m very happy to be joining an independent IP law firm whose primary focus is on client service and client value,” says Mr Provan. “It’s also motivating to become part of the leading IP law firm in the Perth market, and I’m pleased to bring my expertise to the table as they look to meet client demand and further grow their business nationwide.”
Mr Provan joins from IP firm Watermark, where he has served for over three years. Prior to Watermark, Mr Provan ran his own law practice in Perth for 11 years; worked in-house for three years with Moboom, a website building platform and content management system; and practiced for 11 years with Herbert Smith Freehills (then Freehills). Before moving to Perth, he worked with Bristows in London for three years.
Mr Provan is also on the advisory board for Track’em, a Perth-based asset management firm for the mining, oil and gas, engineering and construction industries.
He holds a Bachelor of Laws with Honours from Edinburgh University.
CEO Frank Hurley says, “Guy is very well known in Perth for his legal and litigation expertise. Bringing one of the foremost individual practitioners into Perth’s leading IP law firm, fortifies our position and ability to deliver unsurpassed service in the marketplace. Our nationwide litigation practice will also benefit from Guy’s deep knowledge and expertise.”
Dr Simon Weisman, Senior Associate life sciences and biotechnology
Dr Simon Weisman has over 11 years’ experience working with patents, including over nine years as a patent attorney and two years as a patent examiner.
“When I met the team at Wrays I was impressed by their commitment to client service, their professionalism, and how enthusiastic they were, which is consistent with how I strive to manage my own career,” said Dr Weisman. “I’m looking forward to being part of such a dynamic team and helping Wrays grow its business in life sciences on the east coast.”
Most recently he was a senior associate at Wallington-Dummer, a boutique patent and trade mark attorney practice based in Sydney. Prior to Wallington-Dummer, Dr Weisman spent over six years with FB Rice, and prior to that worked with Pizzeys. Before working with IP and patent firms, Dr Weisman spent two years as an examiner of patents for IP Australia and two years as a post-doctoral research scientist with the Pasteur Institute in Paris.
Dr Weisman holds a PhD in microbiology and a Bachelor of Science with First Class Honours from Monash University and a Masters of Intellectual Property Law from Melbourne University.
CEO Frank Hurley says, “We looked long and hard until we found the right fit for this role. Simon has incredible knowledge, commitment to client service, and strong business development skills and he’ll be a great asset to our team.”