Dr. rer. nat. Erich Fritsche

Dr. Erich Fritsche is a Patent Attorney and partner of the firm. As a biochemist with a doctorate, he specializes in the technical fields of chemistry, pharmacy, and biology/biotechnology. Dr. Fritsche has been working as a Patent Attorney for more than 15 years and advises domestic and foreign clients in all matters of patent law.

Dr. Fritsche advises start-ups and medium-sized companies, as well as large international corporations on all issues of patent and utility model law. The focus of his work is on obtaining, defending, and enforcing patents in the fields of chemistry, pharmaceuticals, biology, and biotechnology. He regularly represents clients in opposition and appeal proceedings before the European Patent Office and has achieved important successes for his clients in numerous proceedings. Dr. Fritsche is admitted as representative at the UPC (European Patent Litigator (UPC)) since June 2023.

In addition, Dr. Erich Fritsche has extensive experience in managing complex patent portfolios, preparing freedom-to-operate, validity and infringement opinions, conducting due diligence analyses, and representing and participating in nullity and infringement proceedings.

Dr. Erich Fritsche studied biochemistry at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich and subsequently obtained his doctorate at the Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry. Prior to his career in intellectual property law, he worked as a consultant for the renowned management consultancy Bain & Company and was jointly responsible for the development of biotech strategies for international pharmaceutical companies and the implementation of reengineering programs for leading companies in the healthcare sector.

In his patent practice, Dr. Fritsche specializes in the fields of chemistry and life sciences, such as:

• Pharmaceuticals (e.g., "small molecule" drugs, generics, biologics, biosimilars, and antisense molecules),
• Biotechnology (e.g., prokaryotic and eukaryotic expression systems, recombinant DNA techniques, and transgenic plants).
• Immunology (e.g., vaccines and monoclonal antibodies).
• Cell biology (e.g. stem cells and cell culture media)
• Aesthetic medicine (e.g. botulinum toxin and hyaluronic acid dermal fillers) 
• Food industry (e.g. food additives, natural polymers, industrial enzymes).

since 2023
European Patent Litigator (UPC)

since 2017
Partner at Wallinger Ricker Schlotter Tostmann

2012
Patent Attorney at WR

2005-2011
Patent Attorney and European Patent Attorney at the law firm Wuesthoff & Wuesthoff in Munich, Germany

2006
Admission as European Patent Attorney

2005
Admission as Patent Attorney, European Trademark Attorney and European Design Attorney

2002-2005
Training as German Patent Attorney at the law firm Hansmann & Vogeser (Munich), at the District Court of Munich, at the German Patent and Trademark Office, and at the Federal Patent Court

1999-2001
Consultant at the management consultancy Bain & Company in Munich

1995-1998
Doctoral thesis at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry in Martinsried in the working group of Nobel Prize winner Prof. Dr. Robert Huber in the field of X-ray structure analysis of proteins; doctorate (summa cum laude) 1998 (Dr. rer. nat.)

1990-1995
Biochemistry studies at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH) (main subjects: microbiology, immunology, genetics, biochemistry, molecular biology, biophysics); diploma 1995 (Dipl. Natw. ETH)

• Patent Attorneys Association (PAK)
• Institute of Professional Representatives before the European Patent Office (epi)
• International Federation of Intellectual Property Attorneys (FICPI)

• "Plausibility as a hurdle for patenting", by Dr. Erich Fritsche and Dr. Cornelia Oetke, in: |transkript Special "Financing + BIO-Europe", issue 11-12, 2018
• "Process patents - a sharp sword!?", IP commentary, by Dr. Erich Fritsche, in: |transkript, issue 5, 2018
• "Patents on Plants and Animals: Quo Vadis EPO?", by Dr. Erich Fritsche, in: AIPLA American Intellectual Property Law Association, Biotech Buzz, 2018
• "Patents on Plants & Animals: Quo vadis EPO?", by Dr. Erich Fritsche, in: |transcript, issue 9, 2017
• "What is the unitary patent?", patent commentary, by Dr. Erich Fritsche and Dr. Laura Leitner, in: |transkript, issue 1-2, 2018
• "The healthcare of the future is individual," by Dr. Erich Fritsche and Dr. Mathias Ricker, in: Science4Life, annual brochure, 2015
• "The EU unitary patent: curse or blessing?", by Dr. Erich Fritsche and Dr. Mathias Ricker, in: GoingPublic Magazine - Special "Biotechnology 2013", 2013
• "Innovative power: patents and medical technology", by Dr. Erich Fritsche and Dr. Mathias Ricker, in: GoingPublic Magazin, issue 11, 2013

Scientific Publications

• Paschos, A., Theodoratou, E., Fritsche, E., Böck, A. und Huber R., Hydrogenase-Reifungsendopeptidase, in: Handbuch der proteolytischen Enzyme (2. Aufl.), 980-982, 2004
• Theodoratou, E., Paschos, A., Magalon, A., Fritsche, E., Huber, R. und Böck, A., Nickel serves as a substrate recognition motif for the endopeptidase involved in hydrogenase maturation, Eur. J. Biochem. 267:1995-1999, 2000
• Fritsche, E., Humm, A. und Huber, R., The ligand-induced structural changes of human L-arginine:glycine amidinotransferase: a mutational and crystallographic study, J. Biol. Chem. 274:3026-3032, 1999
• Fritsche, E., Paschos, A., Beisel, H.-G., Böck, A. und R. Huber, Crystal structure of the hydrogenase maturating endopeptidase HYBD from Escherichia coli, J. Mol. Biol. 288:989-998, 1999
• Fritsche, E., Bergner, A., Humm, A., Piepersberg, W. und R. Huber, Crystal structure of L-arginine:inosamine-phosphate amidinotransferase StrB1 from Streptomyces griseus: an enzyme involved in streptomycin biosynthesis, Biochemistry 37:17664-17672, 1998
• Humm, A., Fritsche, E., Steinbacher, S. und R. Huber, Crystal structure and mechanism of human L-arginine:glycine amidinotransferase: a mitochondrial enzyme involved in creatine biosynthesis, EMBO J. 16:3373-3385, 1997
• Fritsche, E., Humm, A. und Huber, R., Substrate binding and catalysis by L- arginine:glycine amidinotransferase, A mutagenesis and crystallographic study, Eur. J. Biochem. 247:483-490, 1997
• Humm, A., Fritsche, E., Mann, K., Göhl, M. und Huber, R., Recombinant expression and isolation of human L-arginine:glycine amidinotransferase and identification of its active-site cysteine residue, Biochem. J. 322:771-776, 1997
• Humm, A., Fritsche, E. und Steinbacher, S., Structure and reaction mechanism of L-arginine:glycine amidinotransferase, Biol. Chem. 378:193-197, 1997
• Schramm, H.J., Boetzel, J., Büttner, J., Fritsche, E., Göhring, W., Jaeger, E., König, S., Thumfart, O., Wenger, T., Nagel, N.E. und Schramm, W., The inhibition of human immunodeficiency virus proteases by 'interface peptides', Antiviral Research 30:155-70, 1996