Mary Turonek – Principal, Wrays Intellectual Property
Mary’s career path started in academic research where she completed her PhD in Physical and Inorganic Chemistry in 1993. Following two post-doctorates at the University of Warwick and Murdoch University, she entered the patent attorney profession in 1997.
“It was a leap of faith - academia was very different from the corporate world back then,” Mary said. “I’ve never looked back and enjoyed every minute.
“It’s a very constructive and collaborative area of law – I work with clever people who have a vision for their business and provide innovative solutions to technical problems.” Mary has been working with clients in the energy industry since 2005.
After working for several national IP firms, including setting up a Perth office for one, she joined Wrays as a Principal in 2020.
“Wrays Intellectual Property is a national intellectual property specialist firm, bringing together patent and trademark attorneys, IP lawyers and litigators, and corporate advisory to provide end-to-end IP services locally and globally,” Mary said.
“They have been assisting clients to obtain patents, registered trademarks and designs for over 100 years and have a strong and successful record in intellectual asset governance and IP litigation.”
Mary’s primary role is to establish IP rights to protect new technology so that businesses obtain a competitive advantage and realise their value in its R&D. “The two main areas of my practice are mining and mineral processing and energy and oil and gas,” she said.
Mary has been involved in a multitude of projects having worked with multinationals, ASX-listed companies, SMEs, universities, and start-ups. “I couldn’t pick a favourite project as each of them have been unique with different challenges,” she said.
Mary’s greatest achievements have been through her clients. “I live vicariously through my clients!” she said. “I get a great sense of satisfaction when my clients are able to grow or attract capital because they have exclusive rights to technology that gives them a market advantage.”
Mary is continually inspired by “the human capacity to solve problems and develop new technology”.
“At the core of all my clients’ innovations is a desire to change the status quo and make things better,” she said. “I’ll always be a nerd at heart, so I get excited by emerging technologies and their application.”
Mary became a member of the Energy Club WA a little more than five years ago, after attending their events for several years. “The speakers at each event are consistently excellent and provide great insights into the issues facing the energy industry,” she said.
Mary also has a strong interest in helping shape the next generation of young professionals and has been an Industry Mentoring Network in STEM (IMNIS) mentor for postgraduate students since its first pilot program in 2015. “It is a privilege to work with these young people,” she said.
When Mary isn’t working, she is spending time with friends and family, including her three children, and enjoys cooking, yoga, pilates, reading and gin. “There are so many different varieties of gin to try,” she said.
Mary is looking forward to being able to travel once again for “business and pleasure” particularly to explore Australian native gardens. “I recently discovered the Great Western Woodland between Esperance and Kalgoorlie – who knew that this was one of the largest temperate climate woodlands on the planet?” she said.