Ones to Watch France 2024: Yasmine Azzaoui

Every year, JUVE Patent carries out extensive research in the French patent market, culminating in the publication of the French patent rankings. Our latest research highlighted Yasmine Azzaoui, associate at Schertenleib in Paris as one of three ‘Ones to Watch’ in the French patent market for 2024. The individual Ones to Watch 2024 articles are published alphabetically by surname.

At the beginning of 2024, the Paris Court of Appeal made a landmark decision for future SEP disputes in France. But the hearing, which was between Chinese mobile phone provider TCL and standard-setting organisation, ETSI, was also remarkable on the lawyers’ side. TCL representative Schertenleib entrusted 29-year-old associate Yasmine Azzaoui with the 30-minute pleading.

The up-and-coming patent litigation lawyer was certain that the hearing on cost allocation was the ideal opportunity for her first plea. She proved herself and the IP litigation boutique right; TCL not only won the case, but Azzaoui’s work left a lasting impression on observers.

The world belongs to the brave

At a time when established litigators can find it difficult to give their up-and-coming talent room to develop, not to mention the opportunity to make their own pleadings, the hearing was remarkable. Especially in French national hearings, the courts often give limited time for pleadings, with the most established and experienced litigator in the team usually up front.

A few weeks later, Yasmine Azzaoui talks coolly, focused and precisely to JUVE Patent about her preparations for the plea, as well as her path so far. The lawyer, born and raised in Morocco, was only admitted to the Paris Bar in 2021 having joined Schertenleib as a trainee a few months earlier.

From the beginning of her career, Azzaoui was involved in the TCL vs. Philips case, where a case on the merits preceded this year’s trial.

Visible for pharma clients

Conversely to her recent experience, over the past four years her work has focused largely on representing generics manufacturers against originators at the French courts. This is in line with Schertenleib’s specialisation. Azzaoui regularly acts for core client Viatris, for example, and worked on the successful defence brought by Novartis against a PI at the Paris Judicial Court.

The latter case related to cancer treatment drug, fingolimod. Like almost all of the specialised litigation boutique around name partner and founder Denis Schertenleib, is just one part of wider international proceedings. Furthermore, it resulted in opening up a blockbuster market in France.

Another example is Azzaoui’s representation of generics and biosimilar manufacturer Sandoz against Bayer, regarding the latter’s patent for rivaroxaban. She is fascinated by the interplay of technical and legal arguments in such cases; instead of working alongside patent attorneys, her team independently and intensively gets to grips with the underlying innovation.

Denis Schertenleib himself has a degree in molecular biology. Now Yasmine Azzaoui wants to follow this example, systematically deepening her knowledge within chemistry and biology. To this end, she recently began a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and biology alongside her full-time job.

From Paris to South Korea

Previously, Azzaoui had not come into contact with chemistry and biology in her academic education. She decided early on to study economics at secondary school, later moving to Paris to pursue a classical law degree. Here, international and common law especially piqued her interest.

But after Azzaoui went to South Korea for an exchange semester during the first year of her master’s degree, she encountered the importance of IT and IP in law. Seeing the major role played by South Korean telecommunications and conglomerates Samsung and LG in the country’s economy changed her career track for good.

Back in Paris, she gained her first experience of real patent cases, particularly concerning pharmaceutical patents, during a traineeship at French full-service law firm, Gide. Azzaoui then decided to round off her academic education with an LLM at Berkeley, specifically choosing courses on patent and regulatory law. She then passed the exam for the New York Bar.

On returning to Paris, she spent a few months as a trainee at Herbert Smith Freehills, but quickly decided that she did not see her future at a broad-based IP practice. Given her particular interest in patent litigation, Azzaoui joined Schertenleib in 2020. It is here that she learned to appreciate the mix of law and science in patent litigation.

New UPC generation

Although Azzaoui has not yet played a direct role in the firm’s first UPC case, she sees the importance of this law-science interplay as a growing trend at the international court. As part of the UPC generation, the UPC is sure to shape her career – after all, litigators who witnessed the court’s beginnings are sure to learn its development.

From Azzaoui’s point of view, the main challenges at the UPC are teamwork, and having a deep understanding of both technology and law, and how they interact together. Her decision to continue her studies while working is therefore not only a logical move – it is further proof that Yasmine Azzaoui actively meets such challenges head on.

Read JUVE Patent’s analysis of Schertenleib in the JUVE Patent France ranking 2024