November 16, 2007

Daniel R. Bereskin Receives the 2007 WORLDLeaders IP Award

The WORLDLeaders International Intellectual Property Awards have announced that Daniel R. Bereskin, Q.C., co-founding partner of Bereskin & Parr, is the recipient of the 2007 Lifetime Achievement in IP award. Mr. Bereskin was presented with the award last night at a ceremony in London, England.

For the first time in the four years of the event’s history, worldwide entrants were welcomed, not only European nominees, as was the case in previous years.

“Dan is a pre-eminent authority on Canadian and international trade mark law. He is widely regarded by his peers as one of the world’s best trade mark lawyers, which is reflected in the numerous awards and accolades he has received over the years,” said Cynthia Rowden, partner at Bereskin & Parr.

Mr. Bereskin is a frequent recipient of peer recognition, including numerous awards that recognize him as a leading lawyer in the field of intellectual property law. He is also the author of more than 50 papers and articles on various IP law subjects and has served as Counsel to the International Trademark Association.

The WORLDLeaders International IP Awards are presented to outstanding professionals who have demonstrated achievements above and beyond the usual requirements of their profession.

Winners of 2007 Manning Innovation Award

September 26, 2007

Bereskin & Parr is delighted to announce the winners of the 2007 Ernest C. Manning Innovation Award as Frank Schaedlich and Daniel Schneeberger, Co-Founder's of Tekran Instruments Corporation. The Ernest C. Manning Foundation has been recognizing and encouraging innovation in Canada since 1982. Through nomination, Canadian inventors who have demonstrated recent innovative talent in developing and successfully marketing a new concept, process or procedure, may be eligible for the Manning Award.

Bereskin & Parr nominated both of these inventors for the Manning Award in light of the numerous, valuable and groundbreaking innovations that they have made in the mercury detection field.

Frank Schaedlich and Daniel Schneeberger have spent the last fifteen years developing a series of products that have revolutionized the measurement of mercury. In addition to the purely scientific study of mercury in the environment, mercury is of particular interest for both food regulators and consumers, as it is well known that high amounts of mercury can cause damage to the nervous system. Mercury can be found in natural sources such as oceans and fish, and can be released through human activities such as burning garbage and fossil fuels. The ability of mercury to accumulate has resulted in a need to measure extremely low levels in a convenient and accurate manner.

In ambient air, levels of less than 1 ng/m3 (equivalent to 125 parts per quadrillion by volume (125 x 10-15)) are significant. Tekran’s systems for ultra-trace measurement of mercury in ambient air, stack emissions, aqueous samples and other environments are sensitive and robust, with detection limits of less than 0.1 ng/m3, and offer practical immunity to interfering compounds.

One of their first inventions was an automated total ambient air mercury analyzer, that allows for the efficient analysis of extremely low levels of mercury in the environment. The device makes use of the long known affinity of mercury for gold, which has been used for several millennia for the extraction of gold from ore, to provide significant preconcentration. The analyzer operates by passing a precisely measured volume of air through a special absorbent cartridge made of pure gold. Any mercury present in the air is absorbed into the gold. The cartridge is then heated in the presence of an inert carrier gas, which causes the trapped mercury to be released and quantified using cold vapor atomic fluorescence spectrophotometry; they have developed this instrument to be simple and rugged. This device has found widespread application around the world and has detected several unexpected phenomena, including the unexpected generation of ionic mercury at the polar sunrise.

Mercury in the air comes in both an elemental and ionic form, and it is now known that the ionic or reactive form has a very different impact on ecosystems from the elemental form. Consequently, monitoring of mercury emissions requires that the form of mercury present be known. Frank Schaedlich and Daniel Schneeberger have developed a method that allows researchers to differentiate between ionic mercury and mercury in its elemental form. This invention finally gave researchers the tools needed to understand and model mercury emissions, transport and deposition. In fact, this invention was used in the Florida Everglades to reduce mercury levels and save many of the species that were dying from mercury contamination in the 1990's.

In 2003, Tekran Instruments Corporation released the first commercially viable mercury Continuous Emissions Monitoring ("CEM") system, capable of measuring mercury in coal fired plant exhaust gases. Monitoring mercury, or any substance, in stack gases poses considerable challenges, as stack gases present a very hostile environment; they are humid, acidic and contain large quantities of particulates. Previously, it was unrealistic for regulators to impose limits on power plant operators, as there was no practical way to monitor emissions. Now, the Tekran CEM equipment provides an accurate and economical means of monitoring emissions. Accordingly, the United States has recently promulgated new regulations limiting and reducing mercury emissions from coal fired power plants. Other nations including Canada, are following suit.

We, Bereskin & Parr, have had the pleasure and the honour to be responsible for Tekran's patent protection since shortly after the company was formed. By the nature of our practice, we see and learn about many new developments in a large variety of technical fields. However, from our earliest involvement with Frank Schaedlich and Daniel Schneeberger, it was clear that they were making some unique and important contributions in their chosen field, mercury detection. Particularly once they had solved the long-standing problem of measuring mercury in stack gases, we thought they deserved to considered for one of the Manning Awards, and we were pleased to nominate them. We have enjoyed watching the success they have had, and making some contribution to their success.

Further details about Tekran can be found at www.tekran.com

Daniel R Bereskin QC of Bereskin & Parr has been named "the leading trade mark lawyer in the world" for the second consecutive year by Who's Who Legal.

Mr. Bereskin was also recognized as one of the top patent lawyers worldwide by The International Who's Who of Patent Lawyers 2007, the only Canadian to make this list.

We are pleased to announce that the family of Who's Who Legal publications also recognized other Bereskin & Parr professionals. Cynthia Rowden has been acknowledged again as one of the most highly regarded trade mark lawyers worldwide by The International Who's Who of Trademark Lawyers 2007. In addition, Robert MacFarlane, head of Bereskin & Parr's litigation group, was named as one of the four top patent lawyers in Canada by The International Who's Who of Patent Lawyers 2007.

Click here to download Who's Who Legal release (PDF)

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Who's Who Legal is the official research partner of the International Bar Association. Each year, Who's Who Legal compiles thousands of nominations received from clients and private practice professionals to identify the pre-eminent lawyer and firm in each of the 27 practice areas covered in The International Who's Who of Business Lawyers.

The information is also available without charge on www.WhosWhoLegal.com.