David Aylen

Managing Partner, Gowling WLG (International) Inc

David Aylen is an intellectual property lawyer with deep-rooted international experience. 

Following several years of practice in Canada, Mr Aylen served as the managing partner of Gowling WLG’s Russian and CIS business from 2009 until its closure in 2022. Under his leadership, the team brought a Western-style approach to legal issues and was consistently ranked as a top-tier IP practice.

Mr Aylen returned to Canada in 2022 to continue his IP practice and support the growth of Gowling WLG’s IP capabilities around the world. 

Repeatedly recognized as a leading IP lawyer by IAM Patent 1000, Managing Intellectual Property, World Intellectual Property Review, World Trademark Review and Best Lawyers, Mr Aylen has achieved a long list of notable successes for his clients. These include:

• Serving as lead litigator, successfully representing Uponor, a global manufacturer of plumbing, heating and cooling equipment, in a key patent infringement case in Calgary, Alberta.
• Successfully acting for Jaguar in a 3D trademark appeal case with far-reaching implications for the automobile industry as a whole.
• Blocking a third party from securing an international trademark registration in the Ukraine, successfully preventing the client's competitor from marketing an automotive product that was ruled a counterfeit or grey market good.
• Securing the right to register a brand design for Pernod Ricard, one of the world's largest manufacturers of sparkling wine. Successfully arguing an appeal to the Russian patent office, facilitating protection of the client's design in an important win for brand ownership and a rare victory against Rospatent, Russia’s intellectual property office.
• Spearheading a strategy for a massive legal campaign on behalf of one of the world's largest multi-business companies after a competing firm applied to use a similar corporate name. Leading a highly successful strategic planning effort that covered 16 different countries, leading to a successful result and settling the case in multiple international jurisdictions.
• Advising a renowned energy drink producer on a potential trademark conflict in Russia connected with a new product to be launched by a competing organization. Successfully obtaining trademark status for the firm's brand design.
• Leading a successful action in Canada at the Federal Court of Appeal level for his client Dimplex, serving as counsel on a patent matter on electric fireplace technology.
• Serving as co-counsel in the well-known "patent diaper wars" between Kimberly-Clark and Procter & Gamble.
• Acting as co-counsel in the "telecommunications wars" in Canada and the United States between AT&T, MCI and others on the subject of the pioneer patents for 800 and calling card services.
• Acting as Canadian co-counsel concerning proprietary float glass technology and multi-jurisdictional trade secret law (Pilkington PLC v. PPG Industries Inc. arbitration).

Mr Aylen is certified as an IP specialist (trademarks, patents and copyright) by the Law Society of Ontario.