Christopher D. Bown, PhD

About Christopher D. Bown, PhD

Christopher Bown, PhD, heads Gowling WLG's patent practice across Canada, working from Ottawa as a partner and patent agent. Bown's clients range from entrepreneurs and small and mid-sized companies up to multinationals, and the work is about helping each of them protect its intellectual property and manage it well.

Bown's own training is in science. An honours genetics degree from Western came first, then a doctorate in medical sciences at McMaster and postdoctoral research at Ottawa's Neuroscience Research Institute. That research looked at how genes coding for neurotransmission proteins are regulated at the transcription stage, and it also worked toward a diagnostic test for SNPs linked to major depressive disorder. Today Bown brings more than 20 years of strategic IP portfolio management to clients.

On the life sciences side, Bown has protected a good deal of work on biologics, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and diagnostic methods. The technical range runs well past that, though, into ultra-deep mining, viniculture, radio transmission, cosmetic chemistry and aerospace and defence inventions.

Gowling WLG made Bown national leader of its Canadian Patent Group at the start of 2025, taking over from John Harris. Bown took the role to help shape how the group responds to change rather than watch from the sidelines. When the role began, the challenges Bown expected included processing delays at the Canadian Intellectual Property Office after a major systems upgrade and AI software that's now able to write patent applications. Bown has also noted that some clients want one point person on their files, someone they can reach about even the smallest question.