The Rt Hon. Lord Justice Sir Robin Jacob, a judge in the Court of Appeals for England and Wales, will take up the Sir Hugh Laddie Chair in IP Law at University College London (UCL) on May 2.
Jacob was appointed as the first Laddie Chair in June 2010. He will take on the directorship of the Institute of Brand and Innovation Law.
His role will involve managing a series of seminars on IP issues and helping to shape a multidisciplinary research agenda on IP within UCL.
Jacob said: “I’ve been a judge for 17 and a half years, and this was an opportunity to start something new. There’s a really good team at UCL and there is a fantastic law department, so I thought why not?”
Jacob was appointed as a Lord Justice of Appeal in October 2003, having previously served as a High Court Judge in the Chancery Division.
Despite taking up the Laddie Chair, Jacob will not be leaving court entirely. He said: “Coming back is called a retread. I can continue to sit from time to time in the Court of Appeal. I am going to sit for a week this summer and they may ask me back again.”
He added: “I’m now free to do lots of things I didn’t have the time to do before. I’m going to do international lectures and arbitration, and I’ve got some ideas for books and articles.”