Bio
Based in Gowling WLG's Montréal office, George Elvira is a partner and registered patent agent in Canada and the United States.
With over 16 years of experience in the intellectual property (IP) field, George helps innovative organizations in Canada and abroad customize, develop and implement IP management programs and strategies that align with their business and strategic objectives – resulting in tangible and measurable business value for senior management.
As part of George's IP advisory work, he provides strategic advice on obtaining and managing patent rights. He also manages trade secrets and know-how assets, and develops strategic plans to monetize and extract value from these rights and assets.
George works closely with the firm's transactional team to advise clients on the intellectual property aspects of complex, multi-jurisdictional mergers and acquisitions, IPOs, regional and global joint ventures, licensing, cross-border financing (venture capital and private equity), and public and private collaborative research transactions.
He represents clients in due diligence on both the buyer's and seller's side, analyzing and assessing competitive strengths and risks of the IP portfolio (e.g., patents, trade secrets, and know-how) in investment transactions, technology acquisitions, and business sales.
With his extensive scientific background, George also provides technical support to the firm's IP Strategy and Litigation Group.
He advises companies of all sizes, from small and medium-sized enterprises to multinationals, in a variety of sectors, including biotechnology, cannabis, clean technology, energy, pharmaceuticals, animal health and advanced materials.
George speaks English, French, Spanish and Portuguese.