Biography
Michael is the head of our award-winning Technology and Intellectual Property group.He is a market-leading IP litigator, with three decades of trial and appellate experience in Australia. His IP practice encompasses anti-counterfeiting, copyright, trade marks, patents, trade secrets and false advertising. He also has extensive experience in media and entertainment and technology law.
Michael is well known in the market for his strategic advice, deep subject matter knowledge and robust advocacy for clients. His creative strategies and capacity to extract clients from conflicts means that local and international businesses turn to him to help them navigate their most complex IP issues.
He has litigated some of the most important IP cases in the last 20 years, resulting in decisions with profound consequences for the legal landscape in Australia. He is one of the few lawyers to have run appeals in the High Court of Australia concerning copyright, trade mark and patent law.
Twice named Intellectual Property Partner of the Year, Michael holds leading rankings in key legal industry directories, including Chambers Asia-Pacific, Legal 500, Best Lawyers and Doyle’s Guide.
Michael is widely published on IP law in leading journals and periodicals. He is a regular speaker and media commentator on IP law and developments in the use of technology in legal practice. He has a fascination with technology and has published and spoken extensively on the impact of AI.
He holds a BEc (Political Science) and LLB (Honours Class 1) from the University of Sydney.
His memberships include INTA, the ABA, the Copyright Society of Australia and IPSANZ.
Experience
Michael’s experience includes advising:
CPC Patent Technologies in its high-profile patent infringement action against Apple on alleged infringement of biometric patents via the sale of iPhones and iPads in Australia.
Self Care in its successful High Court appeal against the maker of Botox (Allergan), leading to the restatement of key principles of trade mark law on deceptive similarity.
Calidad in its successful High Court appeal against Seiko Epson Corporation, resulting in the overturning of 100+ years of Australian precedent and the adoption of ‘patent exhaustion’.
Acting in High Court appeals in Roadshow Films (liability of online intermediaries for copyright infringement) and IceTV (test for infringement of original copyright works).
Acting in major Federal Court cases involving allegations of data scraping, counterfeiting and trade mark infringement by trade rivals.
Awards and Recognition
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Chambers Asia-Pacific 2025
Band 1 - Intellectual Property: Trade Mark & Copyright
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Lawyers Weekly Partners of the Year Awards 2019 and 2021
Intellectual Property Partner of the Year
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The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific 2025
Ranked as Hall of fame for Intellectual Property and a Leading Partner for Data Protection and Media and Entertainment
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WTR 1000 2025
Ranked Gold for Enforcement and Litigation
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The Best Lawyers in Australia 2026
Ranked for Alternative Dispute Resolution, Class Action Litigation, Entertainment Law, Intellectual Property Law and Litigation
Client first thinking
Chambers Asia-PacificMichael is a market-leading IP practitioner with a wealth of experience in advising clients on a diverse range of contentious matters, and with particular expertise in high-profile copyright disputes.
The Legal 500 Asia-PacificThe practice is headed up by the Sydney-based Michael Williams, who boasts ‘strong capabilities across the board‘ when it comes to trade mark, copyright, and patent matters.
The Legal 500 Asia PacificThe Intellectual Property practice at Gilbert + Tobin is exceptional.
Chambers Asia PacificMichael Williams remains one of the leaders in copyright.