JUVE Comment

This traditional French IP boutique is well positioned in the Paris market for patent litigation. SMEs and large corporates alike trust in the small team, especially clients from the life sciences and telecommunications sectors. The firm litigated for Quadlogic in the patent dispute against the French energy provider Enedis over smart electronic meters. The proceedings currently pending at the Court of Appeal concern a technology deployed globally. As this will grow in importance, particularly in the current debate on reducing carbon emissions, the instruction is likely to significantly raise the small firm’s visibility outside the French market. Up to now, however, the team has been best known for its frequent work for the French telecoms manufacturer Wiko, for whom Catherine Mateu successfully litigated in the French part of the pan-European dispute against Philips. She is the most visible litigator in the team, who “delves deep into the subject matter, is always approachable and is highly committed”, according to one client.

Strengths

Patent litigation, especially in the telecommunications sector.

European strategy

The firm does not have an official network, but does nurture informal connections to a range of IP boutiques in Germany, Italy, Spain, the US, China and Israel. These provide frequent referrals, as shown by the high-profile work for Quadlogic, which stemmed from a US partner firm. Armengaud & Guerlain is thus pursuing a strategy like those of similarly positioned national firms, e.g. Duclos Thorne Mollet-Viéville or Cousin & Associés.

Recommended individuals

Catherine Mateu, Stéphane Guerlain (“we trust them completely”, client)

Team

2 partners, 3 associates

Specialties

Exclusively litigation and advice in IP with a strong focus on patents.

Clients

Litigation: Wiko (defentant) against Philips over mobile communication; Quadlogic (claimant) against Enedis over smart electric meters; Merck Millipore and Merck Biodevelopment (defendants) against Sartorius over bioreactors; Estar Medical against Regenlab over anti-aging product; Telecom Design against former employee over employee invention rights after transfer of company assets to another company.