AIP PATENT & LAW FIRM

What AIP PATENT & LAW FIRM does

AIP PATENT & LAW FIRM (특허법인 AIP) is a Seoul-based intellectual property boutique founded in 2003 by Soowan Lee, a former Korean Patent Court judge and Supreme Court IP judicial research officer. The firm operates from a single office in the Gangnam district (AIP Building, Teheran-ro 14-gil) with approximately 60 employees and offers five integrated service modules: (1) patent, utility model, trademark, design, and copyright prosecution including overseas filings; (2) trials and litigation before the Korean Patent Tribunal, Patent Court, and Supreme Court covering invalidation, infringement, unfair competition, trade secrets, and copyright disputes; (3) prior-art searching, patent mapping, infringement assessment, technology transfer/licensing, and IP strategy counsel; (4) patent and legal document translation; and (5) general civil/criminal/administrative litigation and contract review.

The firm's core competitive asset is human expertise — a bench comprising ex-Patent Court judges, Supreme Court judicial research officers, KIPO examiners and directors, KAIST and Seoul National University technical PhDs, and attorneys with US (Washington, New York, California) and Japanese bar admissions who have worked at Knobbe Martens, Firstlaw, and major Korean IP boutiques. This concentration of judicial-regulatory experience is used to litigate high-stakes patent disputes in semiconductors, LEDs, marine engines, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals.

Commercially, AIP operates as a sales-led B2B professional services firm targeting Korean and international corporates, with over 50% of revenue sourced from foreign clients and trilingual KR/EN/JP service delivery. The firm markets itself through courtroom results (claimed 80%+ win rate against large law firms), IP publication columns, INTA conference participation, and the 2009 Chambers & Partners #1 Korea IP attorney ranking. Pricing is matter-by-matter quote-based professional services fees. Founder-led and privately held with no disclosed external funding.

Name

AIP PATENT & LAW FIRM

Legal name

AIP PATENT & LAW FIRM

Website

https://aiplaw.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

AIP PATENT & LAW FIRM is a Seoul-based intellectual property boutique founded in 2003 that provides patent prosecution, Patent Court and Supreme Court litigation, IP strategy, and translation services to Korean and international corporate clients, with over 50% of revenue from foreign clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Intellectual Property Law Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (541110), Offices of Lawyers (54111)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Intellectual Property (IP) Law (BPAHAAAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Patent Prosecution & Portfolio Management (BPAHAMAA), IP Litigation & Dispute Resolution (BPAHAMAE), IP Search, Watch & Competitive Intelligence (BPAHAMAI), IP Valuation, Damages & Royalty Analysis (BPAHAMAH)

Keywords

• Intellectual property law
• Patent prosecution services
• Patent litigation
• Patent translation services
• Technology transfer licensing

Headquarters

HQ city

Yeoksamdong

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Patent Prosecution Services: Filing and registration services for patents, utility models, trademarks, designs, and copyrights including foreign filing services.
2. Trial and Litigation Services: Handling invalidation trials, infringement lawsuits, unfair competition prevention, trade secret protection, and copyright litigation before Korean Patent Court and Supreme Court.
3. Research, Analysis, and Technology Transactions: Prior art searches, patent mapping, technology transfer and licensing, IP strategy counseling.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

AIP PATENT & LAW FIRM is a specialized intellectual property law firm providing comprehensive legal services including patent and trademark filing (domestic and international), trial and litigation representation before the Patent Court and Supreme Court, prior art research and patent analysis, technology transfer and licensing advisory, patent document translation, and general civil/criminal legal services. The firm serves Korean and international corporate clients, with over 50% of revenue from foreign clients, leveraging a team of former judges and technically trained patent attorneys.

Product overview

AIP PATENT & LAW FIRM is a specialized intellectual property law firm offering comprehensive legal services. The firm provides a integrated portfolio of five core service modules: (1) Patent and Trademark Filing Services covering domestic and international applications for patents, utility models, trademarks, designs, and copyrights; (2) Trial and Litigation Services including patent invalidation trials, infringement lawsuits, and IP-related civil/criminal litigation at the Patent Tribunal and courts; (3) Research, Analysis, and Technology Transaction Services including prior art searches, patent mapping, technology valuation, and licensing; (4) Patent Translation Services for patent specifications and legal documents in multiple languages; and (5) General Legal Services including contract review and administrative litigation. The firm is staffed by former Korean Patent Court judges, Supreme Court judicial research officers, KIPO examiners, and technical experts with backgrounds in mechanics, electronics, IT, chemistry, and biotechnology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Patent and Trademark Filing Services (특허/상표 출원 서비스)
• Trial and Litigation Services (특허심판 및 소송 서비스)
• Research, Analysis, and Technology Transaction Services (특허 조사 및 분석/기술거래)
• Patent Translation Services (특허 번역 서비스)
• General Legal Services (일반 법무 서비스)

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 80% win rate in major patent cases against large Korean and international law firms
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Muhann Patent & Law Firm: Korean IP-focused firm handling patent prosecution, trials, and IP litigation. Comparable boutique positioning targeting Korean corporates and foreign clients.
• Lee & Ko: Top-tier Korean full-service firm with one of the country's strongest IP litigation practices. Competes for the same enterprise patent prosecution and high-stakes IP trial mandates as AIP.
• Kim & Chang: Korea's largest full-service law firm with a market-leading IP practice. Directly competes for high-stakes Korean patent prosecution, litigation, and cross-border IP mandates, though at materially greater scale and broader service breadth.
• Y.P. Lee, Mock & Partners: Major Korean IP-focused law firm handling patent prosecution, litigation, and IP transactions. Closely comparable boutique-style IP specialist competing for similar Korean and international corporate clients.
• FirstLaw P.C. Korean IP boutique law firm previously employing several AIP attorneys. Offers comparable patent prosecution, trademark, and IP litigation services to Korean and international corporates.
• Koreana Patent & Law Firm: Long-standing Korean IP firm where founder Soowan Lee began his career. Directly comparable full-service Korean IP practice covering prosecution, trials, and litigation.
• Hanyang International Patent & Law Firm: Korean IP firm previously employing an AIP attorney. Offers overlapping patent prosecution and litigation services with comparable boutique profile.
• Cho & Partners: Korean IP boutique with deep prosecution and litigation capability. Closely comparable in scale and specialization, competing for similar patent and trademark mandates.

Broad incumbents

• Knobbe Martens: Major US-based IP law firm where AIP's Gyujung Lee interned. Competes for cross-border patent prosecution and litigation matters between Korea and the US, especially for Korean clients pursuing US IP rights.
• Finnegan: Global IP law firm with deep patent prosecution and litigation capability. Competes for cross-border patent matters involving Korean clients, complementing rather than directly replacing domestic Korean IP boutiques.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

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 AIP PATENT & LAW FIRM