About Natasha Burns
Natasha is the head of trade marks at Allens. She has over 25 years of experience in managing the global trade mark portfolios of multinational corporations and fast-growing Australian businesses. Key to her success is her attentiveness to commercial factors and consistently delivering technical excellence.
Natasha has significant international experience, previously spending 12 years as a partner in a leading IP firm in New York before returning to Australia. She advises on all aspects of intellectual property law, with a focus on trade mark protection and enforcement strategies. She works closely with her clients to develop streamlined trade mark prosecution and opposition processes designed for the effective management of large-scale trade mark portfolios.
Natasha's relevant experience includes:
- Management of large-scale trade mark portfolios for Endeavour Group, Simplot, Ford Motor Company, Forever New Clothing, Just Group, BUPA, Reliance Worldwide Corporation, WheelPros LLC and Reece Limited Group.
- Developing effective protection and enforcement strategies of IP assets for leading Australian-based companies Who Gives A Crap, Cobram Estate Olives Limited, Spee3D, Catapult Sports and Tangerine Telecom Pty Ltd.
- Her work includes:
- handling several thousand trade mark applications, opposition and cancellation matters in over 100 different countries;
- advising on intellectual property and information technology aspects of commercial contracts; and
- licensing arrangements for intellectual property rights, including advising on complex, multi-party licensing arrangements between energy and financial sector parties.
- Acting in several successful court proceedings concerning copyright, trade mark, breach of confidential information and patent disputes in Australia and the United States.
- Filing and enforcing the global protection of the term 'tequila' as a geographic indication.
- Representation of clients before the Federal Court of Australia, various U.S. District Courts, at oral hearings before IP Australia and in conjunction with foreign counsel before the United States Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
Natasha is currently ranked by Doyles Guide as a leader in both contentious and non-contentious trade mark matters, holds a Gold ranking by WTR 1000 and is recognised as an IP Star by Managing IP.
She is a long-standing member of INTA, the world-leading International Trademark Association and is regularly invited to present on trade mark protection strategies and contribute to numerous intellectual property publications.
Natasha has been recognised as a leading voice in gender diversity in law and has been recognised by Chambers Asia-Pacific and Lawyers Weekly for various diversity, inclusion and innovation achievements.