Kristen Kilroy

About Kristen Kilroy

Kristen Kilroy works on brands and intellectual property as an associate in Gowling WLG's Toronto office, and most of that work divides between IP litigation and trademark prosecution. Kilroy is also a Canadian Trademark Agent. That means advice on choosing and clearing a mark, moving applications through to registration, managing a portfolio and enforcing rights, whether or not a dispute has started. Clients also rely on Kilroy in trademark opposition and summary cancellation proceedings.

On the litigation side, the disputes have involved copyright, trade secrets and domain names as well as trademarks. Kilroy started at the firm, then Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP, as a summer student in 2013, an articling student the next year, then an associate after the 2015 Ontario call. During 2015, Kilroy also spent time on secondment at a global beverage company, helping with its business, advertising and IP needs.

Outside the day to day, the International Trademark Association named Kilroy one of its Rising Stars in 2025, and that September Kilroy co-presented a webinar on non-traditional trademarks in Canada alongside a Marks&Clerk partner. The writing goes back years, from World Trademark Review in 2017 to a 2025 piece on the Registrar's random summary cancellation proceedings. Before law school, Kilroy earned honours degrees in biology and economics at Queen's, and still takes part in the firm's pro bono program.