Chris Baxter - Founder & Managing Director, Patent & Trade Mark Attorney

"“There is no surer way for a society to create jobs and wealth than by the commercialisation of new technologies anchored on a strong intellectual property foundation.”"

Chris specialises in providing strategic, cross-jurisdictional IP advice on complex patent portfolios and dispute matters, with a focus on inventions arising in the medtech, software, and defence industries. He acts for multinationals, ASX listed companies, university spin-outs and a wide variety of SMEs, in particular in the defence sector. Chris’s portfolio ranges from drone, rocket propulsion and submarine technologies through to medical instruments and biomaterials.

In 2023 and 2024, Chris was recognised as a “Patent Star” by the Managing IP, IP Stars awards programme and as a “Recommended Individual for Patent Prosecution” by IAM Patent 1000”.

Uniquely, alongside providing strategic IP advice, Chris has founded, mentored and invested in dozens of tech start-ups. He is committed to applying his expertise for the advancement of innovation and the Australian economy.

Since 2018, Chris has led Baxter IP’s pro bono activities with UNSW. In 2023, this involved conducting IP due diligence on over 50 new tech companies, completing an important precondition for startups entering UNSW’s 10X accelerator programmes.

In 2023 Chris was recognised as a Recommended Individual for patent prosecution by IAM Patent 1000, who noted his ability to draw “judiciously upon his medical expertise to advise a client base that comprises multinational corporations, universities and SMEs.” Baxter IP was ranked for patent prosecution. Chris was also ranked as an IP Star in Managing IP’s IP STARS for 2023. In 2019, Acquisition International selected him as the “Leading Specialist Patent and Trademark Attorney of the Year, Australia” in the AI Leading Advisers Awards.

Chris has a Master’s Degree in Industrial Property from the University of Technology Sydney (for which he received the award for 1st place in Trade Mark Law), as well as a Bachelor of Engineering Aeronautical from the University of Sydney, where he graduated with 1st Class Honours and the thesis prize in Aeronautical Engineering. After his studies, Chris worked in private practice for two large Australian IP firms, then in-house for the legal team at ResMed.

Chris is a Fellow of The Institute of Patent & Trade Mark Attorneys of Australia, and a member of various international patent attorney organisations, including INTA.

Chris has been interviewed in the Australian Financial Review, on CNBC, Bloomberg, Sky News, the ABC and 2UE.

For Chris’s broader business profile, please visit www.chrisbaxter.com.au.