Reinhard Kathan is a Patent Attorney at the firm Peterreins Schley. He was admitted as a European and German Patent Attorney in 2025.

He is primarily involved in patent litigation before the German national courts as well as the Unified Patent Court (UPC). His work further comprises opposition proceedings and patent prosecution before the European Patent Office (EPO) and the German Patent and Trademark Office (DPMA). While advising start-ups as well as large international clients in all matters of patent law, Reinhard enjoys working closely with each client in finding tailored solutions to best protect and manage their IP interests in Europe, including new legal opportunities (e.g., European Patent with Unitary Effect and Unified Patent Court), strategic needs, and other IP-related aspects such as employee invention law.

Prior to starting his work in the IP field, Reinhard Kathan studied Electrical Engineering and Information Technology at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) including a term at the Jacobs School of Engineering at the University of California in San Diego, focusing on Power Engineering, Signal Processing, and Machine Learning. During his internship with the audiometry research group at Klinikum rechts der Isar of TUM he gained hands-on experience in audio signal processing. For his Master’s Thesis, he worked at Siemens AG on the development of routing algorithms for automated Electrical Routing in CAD systems. During his studies, he was supported by two prestigious scholarships, namely Cusanuswerk and Max Weber Program as part of the Elite Network of Bavaria.

Besides his academic education, Reinhard Kathan completed an apprenticeship as a mechatronics technician and thus gained practical knowledge in the field of automation and robotics.

SPECIAL TECHNICAL EXPERTISE

• Electronics (robotics, control systems, power electronics)
• Software (AI/Machine Learning)
• Medical devices (catheters, pacemakers, hearing devices)