JUVE Comment

This French firm’s patent litigation team is one of the top names in its domestic market and long-standing clients are entrusting it with some of their most important lawsuits. One example is the work for Abbott against Dexcom. In the extensive UPC proceedings, August Debouzy is working with a Taylor Wessing team from several other European jurisdictions.

In the competitive printing technology market, the practice brought a high-profile lawsuit for its long-standing client HP against a smaller competitor. The international group Unilever also chose the team for its first proceedings in Paris. One particularly interesting case was the work for Freshfields lawyer Christopher Stothers in the dispute over fundamental legal questions concerning public access to UPC documents.

Clients of different sizes and from technical fields as varied as medical devices, IT and software feel well represented by the mixed team, praising it in the highest terms for “good responsiveness, a good understanding of our products and process technologies”. Another said, “The technical background and IP knowledge across courts and the EPO best suits our purpose.”

In contrast to boutiques from Germany that are highly visible at the UPC, such as Bardehle Pagenberg, and internationally positioned law firms such as Taylor Wessing, August Debouzy has not yet reached the top of the market at the UPC. This is because clients do not tend to retain the firm for cases at the German local divisions – the most popular courts to date.

Although the team around Grégoire Desrousseaux and François Pochart enjoys an excellent reputation in the European patent market and is highly valued by its clients, it is not the automatic choice for actions that are filed outside Paris.

To boost its success at the UPC, the practice could step more to the fore when proceedings are pending at other locations. The team can score points here with its litigation experience in major EPO oppositions.

Strengths

In-depth litigation expertise in medtech and electronics. Close combination of technical and legal expertise.

Recommended individuals

Grégoire Desrousseaux (“experience with the judges in the Paris local division, perfect technical background and IP knowledge across courts and the EPO”, client)

Team

5 patent attorneys, 8 lawyers, 4 dual qualified

Clients

Abbott France against Dexcom over glucose-monitoring devices; Abott Diabetes Care against SiBio Technology/Umedwings Netherlands over glucose-monitoring devices; HP against Lama France over printing technology; FDE against Canè over filling technology for syringes; ICPillar against Arm over remote control technology; Unilever against IGB over child-proof packaging; Christopher Stothers against Ocado over a request for public access to the UPC register.