JUVE Comment

The well-positioned French team of this US firm is best known for its deep roots among clients from the life sciences and pharma sector. The firm litigated for Santen in a precedent issue involving SPCs at the CJEU. Although the proceedings did not end in the client’s favour, the case underlines the vast SPC experience of Thomas Bouvet’s team.

In other sectors, too, the team is frequently involved in cross-border litigation cases, with one recent example the work for Lufthansa with the UK and German offices. Cooperation with the latter is especially close, partly because the Paris office has not integrated any patent attorneys of its own yet. In addition, Bouvet boasts specialist expertise in plant protection law. Australian company Star Fruits is among long-standing clients.

The Paris patent litigation team is tightly woven into a broadly positioned IP practice of four partners with an excellent name in trademarks. The practice dynamically raised its visibility by appointing a young IP partner specialising in IP transactions. He mostly advises on IP agreements.

Strengths

Integrated patent litigation in Europe and the US.

European strategy

The French practice works closely with the German and US practices, including sharing several cases with German patent attorneys. The team shares numerous clients with the solid German practice, such as Coloplast or Lufthansa. The London patent team is also well-positioned and has widened its client base beyond life sciences. Internationally, close cooperation with the strong US teams is an asset, as is the integrated work with patent attorneys mainly located in the German offices.

Recommended individuals

Thomas Bouvet (“leads many important cases,” competitor)

Team

1 partner, 3 associates

Specialties

All-round IP activity. Licensing contracts, transactions and strategic advice.

Clients

Santen (claimant) at CJEU over SPC; Lufthansa (claimant) against Astronics, Safran and Panasonic over aeroplane seats; Infineon (defendant) against Intellectual Ventures over SEPs; Knauf against Saint Gobain over isolation (Court of Appeal); Schwind (defendant) against Carl Zeiss over laser surgery devices; Coloplast (claimant) against Hollister over urinary catheters; Western Australia Agriculture Authority/Star Fruits (claimant) at the General Court of the European Union over Cripps Pink/Pink Lady and against Teak on Burbee and Pink Lady; Advice for Vestergaard Frandsen over trade secrets.