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The team at CMS Francis Lefebvre Avocats can assist you with your patent law issues. Our team of lawyers based in Paris is well experienced in the following fields: 

Litigation: “Saisie-contrefaçons” counterfeit seizures, Infringement actions, in particular in summary proceedings, unfair competition and parasitism, disputes related to trade secrets, Actions for patent/SPC invalidation or declaration of non-infringement and Litigation related to employee inventions.

Advice and drafting contracts: R&D contracts, relationships with inventors, Filing strategy, portfolio audit, valuation, technology transfer, Assignment, licensing or co-ownership agreements.

Most of the matters have cross-border aspects and require close coordination with actions carried out abroad.

Our team is used to working in several technical fields, in particular in the pharmaceutical and health products fields (also has good knowledge of the regulatory framework applicable to these products), but also in the fields of electronics, mechanics or consumer products. 

This experience  complements an excellent knowledge of other complex disputes such as trade secrets infringement (particularly technical know-how) or unfair competition and/or parasitism. 

Our team is part of the CMS network of over 150 lawyers, legal experts and specialists advisors in 33 countries. It allows us to propose a global strategy in adequacy with the needs of our customers. This particular  know-how is set to become more importantwith the arrival of the Unified Patent Court and the Unitary Patent.

Quotes 2023

The Legal 500

Intellectual propety : patents

With a particular focus on the life sciences, electronics and mechanics sectors, CMS Francis Lefebvre frequently handles patent infringement litigation and associated claims for damages, as well as assisting in disputes between employers and employees in relation to the ownership of patents. The team around practice head Jean-Baptiste Thiénot also handles research and development contracts, assignment and licence agreements and portfolio audits. Anne-Laure Villedieu, who focuses on data privacy matters, heads the firm’s IP department.

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09/08/2024
Antibody Appeals Uncovered
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19/07/2024
A healthy balance between novelty and sufficiency for a claimed therapeutic...
The question of novelty and sufficiency of second medical use claims in light of clinical trial prior art has been addressed by the EPO Boards of Appeal on a number of occasions. In recent decision T...
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13/06/2024
What’s in a name? The use of a product code in a clinical trial protocol...
The use of product or sponsor codes in clinical trial related documents is common practice in the pharmaceutical space. However, such codes may not always be sufficient to disregard a publication as relevant...
Law-Now Life Sciences & Healthcare
16/05/2024
A broader interpretation of "substance or composition" - good news for...
A recent decision from the EPO Boards of Appeal (T 1252/20) potentially paves the way for more diverse products to be patentable in Europe using the medical use claim format.The back­ground:Art­icle 53(c)...
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11/04/2024
Navigating clinical trial disclosures: No reasonable expectation of success...
Recent EPO Board of Appeal decision T 1437/21 adds to a growing number of decisions concerning the patentability of second or further medical use inventions where the prior art relates to a clinical trial...
Law-Now Life Sciences & Healthcare
03/04/2024
EP Case Law in Brief: Long-felt want and inventive step
“Where the invention solves a technical problem which workers in the art have been attempting to solve for a long time, or otherwise fulfils a long-felt need, this may be regarded as an indication of...
Law-Now Patent
25/03/2024
Patentability of inventions relating to diagnostic methods at the EPO (G...
Under Article 53(c) of the European Patent Convention (EPC), diagnostic methods practised on the human or animal body are excluded from patentability. The purpose behind this exclusion is to avoid patent...
Law-Now Life Sciences & Healthcare
18/01/2024
EP Case Law in Brief: Commercial success and inventive step
“Commercial success alone is not to be regarded as indicative of inventive step, but evidence of immediate commercial success when coupled with evidence of a long-felt want is of relevance provided...
Law-Now Patent
21/11/2023
EP Case Law in Brief: Proof of common general knowledge
It is a common sight for a patent attorney – an EPO Examiner acknowledges that a claim is novel, but asserts a lack of inventive step over ‘D1’ in combination with ‘common general knowledge’...
Law-Now Patent
07/11/2023
Description amendments at the EPO – the Appellant agrees with the need...
Description amendments bringing the content of the description in line with the allowed claims remain a controversial topic in the European practice. As reported previously, the Board of Appeal in T0056/21...
Law-Now Patent
06/10/2023
The European Patent Office (EPO) ‘10-day rule’
By the Decision of the Administrative Council of 13 October 2022, a number of Rules of the Implementing Regulations to the European Patent Convention have been amended. These include Rule 126 (Notification...
Law-Now Patent
28/09/2023
EP Case Law in Brief: Erroneous Disclosures
“Mistakes in a document do not in themselves constitute prior art such as to prevent the grant of a patent.”So begins section I.C. 4.9 of the Case Law of the Boards of Appeal. This statement, and...
Law-Now Patent
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