Kan Otani is a patent attorney at Ohno & Partners. Otani specialises in patent disputes and IP strategy counselling for technology-oriented start-up and small medium businesses. He handles patent dispute cases including domestic and multi-national litigations and licence negotiations in wide range of technical fields including electronics, communication, software, optics, medical devices and, standard essential patents (SEPs). When advising a start-up, he provides comprehensive advice covering patent, design, trade mark and copyright depending on the nature of the client’s business.
Otani writes articles on both patent enforcement and prosecution topics from a theoretical point of view as well as a strategic point of view.
He is continuously involved in more than five patent infringement lawsuits and has worked on more than 500 patent applications.
His understanding and experience in both enforcement and prosecution enables him to maximise the strength of a patent holder’s position. In a patent litigation, or before a patent litigation, Otani’s advice includes the evaluation of infringement and validity and, if necessary, how the claims should be corrected and tailored before the Japan Patent Office while or before litigating or negotiating with the opposing party. Similar advice is given in due diligence in M&A to evaluate the patent position of an acquiring party or a party to be acquired. In a patent prosecution, his experience in intense litigations helps his clients in establishing a quality patent with full consideration of its actual enforceability before the courts. This has been especially beneficial for a start-up with limited resources in filing a few patent applications to establish effective rights.
Otani’s practice is backed by his smooth understanding of the technology at issue based on his scientific background. After studying applied physics at Keio University in Tokyo, Otani continued his study at Harvard University and received his MS in applied physics in 2005. His experimental research topic was nanoscale materials science and condensed matter physics.
He joined a patent prosecution firm in 2006 and moved to a large general law firm where he expanded his practice to enforcement and joined Ohno & Partners in 2012.
Otani writes articles on both patent enforcement and prosecution topics from a theoretical point of view as well as a strategic point of view.
He is continuously involved in more than five patent infringement lawsuits and has worked on more than 500 patent applications.
His understanding and experience in both enforcement and prosecution enables him to maximise the strength of a patent holder’s position. In a patent litigation, or before a patent litigation, Otani’s advice includes the evaluation of infringement and validity and, if necessary, how the claims should be corrected and tailored before the Japan Patent Office while or before litigating or negotiating with the opposing party. Similar advice is given in due diligence in M&A to evaluate the patent position of an acquiring party or a party to be acquired. In a patent prosecution, his experience in intense litigations helps his clients in establishing a quality patent with full consideration of its actual enforceability before the courts. This has been especially beneficial for a start-up with limited resources in filing a few patent applications to establish effective rights.
Otani’s practice is backed by his smooth understanding of the technology at issue based on his scientific background. After studying applied physics at Keio University in Tokyo, Otani continued his study at Harvard University and received his MS in applied physics in 2005. His experimental research topic was nanoscale materials science and condensed matter physics.
He joined a patent prosecution firm in 2006 and moved to a large general law firm where he expanded his practice to enforcement and joined Ohno & Partners in 2012.