Overview
inovia is a foreign filing platform. We offer two products: pctfiler for PCT national stage entry and epvalidation for European patent validation.
The inovia story
As a patent attorney, inovia's founder, Justin Simpson, frequently experienced the expensive and time-consuming tasks of entering the PCT national stage and validating European patents. He understood that, for the most part, they were relatively simple processes that could be automated without the need for substantive attorney advice. So using his computer science background, Justin developed the pioneering tools and procedures that are now the bedrock of inovia's pctfiler and epvalidation products.
He started the company in 2002 after filing his own patent and, in 2003, this patent was featured amongst the World Intellectual Property Organization's (WIPO) notable inventions.
pctfiler enables patent owners and their attorneys to complete the transaction of entering the national stage in up to 27 countries with one simple instruction.
epvalidation allows for a European patent to be validated in up to 35 countries with one simple instruction.
inovia is now a global organization with over 750 clients and handles the national stage entry of more PCTs than virtually every attorney firm in the world.
Our expertise
inovia was created and is run by a group of patent attorneys and IP professionals. Our team specializes in the intricacies of PCT national stage entry and European patent validation.
Our experts have an excellent understanding of the patent process. Although we do not offer legal advice, we can, if necessary, offer guidance through the administrative steps involved in the PCT national stage and European validation processes.
Whether you need help understanding patent requirements in specific countries, claim amendments, or more general information, we have the resources to support you.
The inovia team
With offices in New York, London and Sydney, as well as representatives across the globe, inovia's IP professionals can help you around the clock. Find out more about our patent experts and management team below:
- Justin Simpson, Founder and Executive Director
Justin Simpson, Founder and
Executive DirectorJustin is a qualified Australian patent attorney and legal practitioner. Convinced that there was a more efficient way to file patents overseas, he invented the inovia technology platform (then called PCTFILER) in 2000 and founded the company in April 2002. Since then, Justin has been involved in all aspects of the company’s growth. Prior to starting inovia, Justin worked as a software-specialist patent attorney for a number of Australian attorney firms including Allens Arthur Robinson and Shelston IP. He has also worked as in-house counsel for Australia's most prolific patent filer, Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd.
- David Nelson, CEO
David Nelson, CEO
David joined inovia from Divergent Capital, one of the company’s major investors, where he was Managing Director and a key member of the inovia Board of Directors. David's significant management experience brings tremendous value and strength to inovia's leadership team. Having worked as a management consultant prior to joining inovia, David led a number of client projects through the sales, planning and delivery phases achieving significant benefits for a number of blue chip Australian companies.
- Jeff Sweetman, Head of Professional Services
Jeff Sweetman, Head of Professional Services
Jeff is an Australian patent attorney and has been with the company since shortly after its inception. He has been heavily involved in the development of our robust systems and processes. Jeff has spent much of the last five years running the administrative side of inovia; this has given him a deep understanding of the international legal and business framework in which we operate. Prior to joining inovia, Jeff was Head Patent Counsel for Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd, Australia’s most prolific filer of patent applications. Before that, he was a patent attorney with Shelston IP and Spruson & Ferguson in Sydney, and Page, White & Farrer in London.
- Ben Coombes, Operations Manager
Ben Coombes, Operations Manager
Ben joined inovia in 2005 from the Australian Patent Office where he spent several years as a Patent Examiner. With a Bachelors Degree in Engineering (Computer Systems), Ben is responsible for the smooth and efficient running of the company’s production department. Ben’s in-depth knowledge of the industry and inovia’s in-house systems make him an integral part of the company’s management team.
- Joe Marino, Senior Vice President
Joe Marino, Senior Vice President
Joe joined inovia from The NewsMarket, an online video content delivery platform. He has significant experience leading and training sales professionals while defining business strategy. In his role as Senior Vice President, Joe is responsible for leading inovia's sales teams in New York and London. Prior to joining inovia Joe held senior sales and marketing roles at IRG Research, The Street.com and Thomson Financial.
- Andreas Popper, IP Lawyer (Europe)
Andreas Popper, LLM ACIArb
Representative Director, inovia JapanAndreas is a German lawyer specializing in IP Law and is the Representative Director of inovia Japan. Prior to joining inovia, he led the Japanese market entry of a number of European and US enterprises, while acting as both a consultant and direct supervisor of their business objectives in Japan. Andreas has also worked for S&E Law and Patent Office in Tokyo, and as a counselor for east-west relations at the Municipal Government of Miyazaki City. Before moving to Japan, Andreas worked for law firms in Germany, Spain, England and Belgium as an adviser of Far-Eastern Corporations in business development, EU project financing, and foreign trade and import duty policy matters.
- Tesha Ramos, Patent Paralegal
Tesha Ramos, Senior Director, IP consulting
Tesha provides inovia clientele, prospective clients and staff with support and basic information related to PCT national stage entry. She is a patent paralegal with over eight years of patent prosecution and national stage entry experience. Tesha joined inovia from US law firm, Kenyon & Kenyon LLP, where she was responsible for maintaining the patent portfolios of clients in the automotive, information technology and pharmaceutical industries.
- Marcel Simpson, Finance Manager
Marcel Simpson, Finance Manager
Marcel joined inovia at its conception in 2002. He brings 35 years experience in the insurance industry to his role as the company’s Finance Manager and his breadth of business knowledge makes him a key contributor to the company’s strategic and commercial development.
- Investors and Shareholders
Investors and Shareholders
inovia’s share register includes representatives from 17 well-known patent attorney firms around the world. Early stage funding was also provided by Divergent Capital, an Australian venture capital fund.
