JUVE Comment

Hogan Lovells’ French practice enjoys a superb reputation when it comes to litigating for the overall firm’s core clients in the French part of pan-European cases. The team frequently makes the market sit up and take notice with its skilful and pragmatic litigation style and, despite its relatively small team, positions itself on an equal level with its partners in other jurisdictions.

The young team is at home in all technologies and, where technically necessary, works closely with the patent attorneys from the other offices, especially Düsseldorf. The team delivered an equally brilliant performance in high-profile life sciences litigation for Eli Lilly and in the recently settled telecoms case for Oppo against Nokia over FRAND matters. New international cases such as HID Global over RFID textile labels also landed on the firm’s desks this year.

Strengths

Integrated cross-border patent litigation, especially in the pharma and mobile communications sectors.

European set-up

Hogan Lovells’ strategy is to become one of the top names for UPC cases in all corners of Europe. To this end, the firm has successfully built up the Paris team in recent years with foresight, patience and, above all, consistently strong integration within pan-European litigation. The French practice is therefore likely to be seen in future UPC cases due to its excellent integration within the overall firm. The fact that the Paris team is comparatively small does not seem to be a disadvantage within the Hogan Lovells network as – more than any other – it is closely interwoven with the firm’s other teams; the French lawyers work especially closely day-to-day with the large Düsseldorf practice. Competition among partners, like that integral to the success model of competitor Bird & Bird, is certainly not part of Hogan Lovells’ identity. The cross-border litigation teams in Paris, Amsterdam, London, Düsseldorf, Hamburg and Munich work hand in hand in important pharma, mobile communications and electronics cases. Clients value this service, as demonstrated for years by the client list of the French office. Partner Stanislas Roux-Vaillard enjoys a first-rate reputation in the market and competitors attest to other lawyers like Adrien Bonnet having all the qualities they need for a bright future.

Recommended individuals

Stanislas Roux-Vaillard (“often my first choice”, client), Adrien Bonnet (“up-and-coming really good lawyer”, competitor)

Team

4 lawyers

Specialties

Patent litigation with broad technical expertise. Strong focus on pharmaceutical disputes for originators, as well as for implementers in the telecommunications sector. Large, international client base. Very active in cross-border litigation.

Clients

Litigation: Eli Lilly (claimant) against Zentiva over cancer drug pemetrexed; Dürr Systems (defendant) against Sames Kremlin over automotive paint robots; Astronics (defendant) against Lufthansa over aeroplane seats; Oppo (defendant) against Nokia over 4G and 5G technology including FRAND (settled in 2024); Orange (defendant) against Assia over technology for home communication networks; HID Global (defendant) against Datamars on RFID textile label.