Shelston IP

What Shelston IP does

Shelston IP, presented in the source data alongside its closely related identity Spruson & Ferguson, is one of the largest specialist intellectual property firms in Australia and New Zealand, operating within the IPH Ltd holding group. Founded in 1894 and headquartered in Sydney, the firm specialises in patent prosecution, trade mark registration, design protection, and IP law services, filing over 14,000 patents and more than 5,000 trade marks annually. Its client base spans multinational corporations, research and development organisations, university commercialisation arms, and local innovators and SMEs across the Asia-Pacific region.

The firm delivers services through a regional network of 10 offices covering Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Beijing, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Bangkok, and Manila, serving clients across 25+ jurisdictions. Its workforce of 500+ employees includes 190+ IP professionals, supported by an IP-focused law subsidiary (Spruson & Ferguson Lawyers) that provides litigation, dispute resolution, and commercial IP advisory. Service delivery is organised around four core practices — Patents, Trade Marks, Designs, and Intellectual Property Law — with dedicated industry groups spanning Aerospace & Defence, Chemical & Healthcare, Life Sciences & Biotechnology, ICT/Electronics/Software, Fintech, Energy & Resources, and Consumer/Food/Retail. The firm is not a technology company; it is a professional services practice whose product is expert legal advice and attorney services.

The business model is professional services fee-for-service, with revenue generated through hourly rates and fixed fees on patent, trade mark, design, and IP law matters. Go-to-market is sales-led and relies on direct enterprise engagement, long-term client relationships, professional referrals, and brand reinforcement through industry publications and analyst rankings (IAM Patent 1000, WTR 1000, Managing IP IP Stars, Chambers & Partners, Doyle's Guide). Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The firm is part of the IPH Ltd group, a holding structure that provides capital backing and cross-firm synergies across the Asia-Pacific IP services market.

Name

Shelston IP

Legal name

Spruson & Ferguson Pty Ltd

Website

https://shelstonip.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1894

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Shelston IP is a Sydney-headquartered specialist intellectual property firm within the IPH Ltd group, filing over 14,000 patents and 5,000 trade marks annually across 10 Asia-Pacific offices. It serves multinational corporations, R&D organisations, universities, and SMEs with patent, trade mark, design, and IP law services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Intellectual Property Legal Services

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Patent Prosecution & Portfolio Management (BPAHAMAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Intellectual Property (IP) Law (BPAHAAAF), IP Filing, Annuities & Renewals Administration (BPAHAMAJ), IP Search, Watch & Competitive Intelligence (BPAHAMAI)

Keywords

• Patent prosecution services
• Trademark registration services
• Intellectual property law
• IP portfolio management
• Design protection services

Headquarters

HQ city

Sydney

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices10 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. IP Attorney Services: Professional fees for patent prosecution, trade mark registration, design protection, and IP law services. Revenue generated through service fees for intellectual property filing, prosecution, opposition proceedings, and portfolio management.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Shelston IP is a specialist intellectual property law firm providing patent attorney, trademark, and design services across Australia and New Zealand. The firm offers end-to-end IP services including patent and trademark prosecution, IP portfolio management, IP disputes and litigation, commercial IP advisory, and regulatory IP compliance. It serves inventors, SMEs, research-intensive organizations, and multinational corporations seeking protection and commercialization of their IP rights.

Product overview

Spruson & Ferguson is a specialist intellectual property firm providing a comprehensive suite of IP services across the Asia-Pacific region. The firm operates as a unified offering comprising core legal services including Patents, Trade Marks, Designs, and IP Law (litigation and commercial advisory), delivered through Spruson & Ferguson Lawyers. The portfolio also includes the Technology Transfer IP Hub Australia resource. With over 130 years of operation, the firm files over 14,000 patents and more than 5,000 trade marks annually across 10 offices serving 25+ countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Patent Services
• Trademark Services
• Design Services
• IP Disputes and Litigation
• IP Strategy and Management
• Licensing and Commercialisation
• Plant Breeder's Rights
• Domain Names
• Regulatory and Compliance IP Services

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• IPH LtdcoreOthersParent company group. Spruson & Ferguson companies are members of the IPH Ltd group. The firm is part of an ownership group for the purposes of the Australian and New Zealand Code of Conduct for Trans-Tasman Patent and Trade Marks Attorneys 2018.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Spruson & Ferguson: Fellow IPH Ltd group member operating across the same Asia-Pacific footprint (Australia, China, Singapore, ASEAN), with overlapping patent, trade mark, design and IP law services. Effectively a sister firm sharing infrastructure and clients within the IPH platform.
• Griffith Hack: Australian-headquartered IP firm (also part of IPH Ltd) with deep patent, trade mark and IP law practice across Australia and Asia. Directly comparable in service mix, client base and regional footprint.
• Davies Collison Cave: Long-established Australian IP firm with offices in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane plus Asian presence. One of the most direct competitors to Shelston IP in patent and trade mark prosecution, with similar client mix.
• Phillips Ormonde Fitzpatrick (POF): Major Australian IP firm with a strong patent and trade mark prosecution practice serving multinational and domestic clients. Headquartered in Melbourne with regional offices; closely comparable in scale and service offering.
• FB Rice: Specialist Australian IP firm with a strong life sciences and ICT patent practice, competing directly for multinational and university commercialisation mandates. Comparable in talent profile and patent prosecution focus.
• Wrays: Western Australia-based IP firm with national and international coverage through partnerships, focused on patent, trade mark and design prosecution. Competes with Shelston IP for mid-market and corporate clients in the region.

Broad incumbents

• Bird & Bird: Global law firm with a leading international IP practice and a dedicated Asia-Pacific presence (Singapore, Hong Kong). Competes with Shelston IP for cross-border IP mandates from multinationals, but offers a much broader practice beyond IP.
• Hogan Lovells: Global law firm with significant patent prosecution and IP litigation capabilities across Asia-Pacific. Competes for the same multinational IP portfolio work, but with deeper global reach and broader non-IP practices.
• K&L Gates: Global law firm with IP practices in Australia, Singapore and other Asia-Pacific hubs. Offers overlapping IP prosecution and portfolio management but competes as part of a larger full-service platform.

Others

• IPH Ltd: ASX-listed parent platform that owns Shelston IP, Spruson & Ferguson, Griffith Hack and other regional IP firms. Not a direct competitor but the holding structure that provides capital, shared services and cross-firm referrals relevant to the subject firm.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/shelstonip
• Facebookfacebook.com/519965564732488
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/shelston-ip

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Shelston IP