France

Amar Goussu Staub is a boutique litigation firm. The firm is led by name partners Grégoire Goussu, Cyrille Amar, and Antonin Staub. In November 2022, the firm announced a UPC legal practice with EIP. The legal practice is known as EIP Amar.

August Debouzy has established itself as one of the leading law firms in the French patent litigation scene thanks to the leadership of Grégoire Desrousseaux and François Pochart, both of whom are qualified as patent attorneys and lawyers. Both partners have a background in engineering but Pochart has carved out a patent practice in the pharmaceutical sector while Desrousseaux handles disputes in a range of technical fields, including electronics and mechanics.

The firm is also recommended for patent office proceedings, trade mark work and IP transactions. Managing partner Mahasti Razavi is a key contact for trade mark matters. The partners are supported by practitioners such as Lionel Martin, Pierre-Olivier Ally and European patent attorney Asma Bendjaballah.

Bardehle Pagenberg's French team is recommended for disputes work, especially in the area of patents. IP Star Julien Fréneaux leads the boutique's practice in Paris. In disputes, Fréneaux is supported by senior lawyers Dominique Dupuis-Latour and Axel Munier and a team of patent attorneys. Computer technology patent specialist Marie-Claude Pellegrini is a notable patent attorney who handles both prosecution and litigation matters. Marie-Léa Rols and Clément Jaffray are notable junior practitioners to watch. Soft IP instructions in the firm are led by Rebecca Delorey.

Beau de Loménie is a coveted pan-European attorney firm with a broad breadth of IP practice, across the spectrum of patents, trade marks, designs, copyright and domain names. The firm maintains seven offices with global breadth encompassing Latin America and Asia. Partner Philippe Hubert is an acclaimed patent specialist in the chemistry, biology and life sciences area. Soft IP duties are assigned to partner Emmanuelle Machinet, who joined the partnership in 2021.

Bird & Bird is recommended for contentious and non-contentious soft IP work, including brand protection and portfolio management. The French IP team can handle disputes in a range of sectors, notably TMT, life sciences and mechanics. Patent Star Géraldine Arbant and Anne-Charlotte Le-Bihan lead the firm's IP team in France. Arbant specialises in brand protection and IP-related transactions. In soft IP work, the partners are supported by a team of junior lawyers, notably Estelle Henry-Mayer, and Frédérique Bocqueraz. Henry-Mayer also specialises in brand protection work. The team can also tap into the knowledge of IP counsel Edouard Treppoz.

Bouchara & Avocats is a boutique firm specialising in contentious and non-contentious soft IP work. The firm offers a range of services including IP registration and disputes. It also handles related matters such as advertising law and domain name disputes. The firm has offices in Paris and Lyon. Founder and IP star Vanessa Bouchara is the key contact at this firm. She is supported by a team of associates, notably Adèle Maier and Héta Sacko, who specialise in trade mark management.

Boutique IP firm Candé Blanchard Ducamp is highly recommended for soft IP work, especially trade marks. Julien Blanchard and Claire Herissay-Ducamp now lead the practice, following the retirement of trade mark and design guru Patrice de Candé. The partners are supported by a small team of associates.

Dentons is recommended for IP disputes. Loïc Lemercier, who joined the firm in 2021, is a key contact for IP instructions.

Dreyfus is a boutique IP firm founded in Paris in 2004. The firm provides advisory services on the commercial use of IP, and handles litigation, arbitrations and domain name disputes. The firm has expanded to open offices in Lyon and Strasbourg. IP star Nathalie Dreyfusfounded the firm. She specialises in all matters relating to trade marks. Soraya Zreik and Emmanuel Harrar, who specialises in matters relating to IP and IT, are the other key contacts at the firm.

Duclos Thorne Mollet-Viéville & Associés is respected in this jurisdiction for IP litigation. Partners Eléonore Gaspar, Pascal Lefort and Thomas Cuche now spearhead client instructions in the firm, though veteran IP litigators Thierry Mollet-Viéville and Magali Thorne are still in the firm as partners. Arnaud Vanbremeersch, who understands IP transactions, is another notable partner in the firm. The partners are supported by a team of associates, notably Agathe Zajdela and Aurélia Jolivalt. Marie-Elvire de Moro-Giafferri and Laurine Janin-Reynaud are practitioners to watch.

Gevers is a well-known European IP firm which is recommended for IP protection and portfolio management. It has patent specialists for a range of technical fields including chemistry, biotechnology and engineering. European patent attorneys Laurent Barbe and Claire Bernstein are leaders in the patent practice while Emilie Artuphel and Nathalie Rousset are among the experienced European trade mark attorneys in the firm.

Business law firm Gide Loyrette Nouel is recommended for IP litigation and transactions work. Its prominent lawyers for IP disputes are Emmanuel Larere and Raphaëlle Dequiré-Portier. They are supported by lawyers such as Julien Guinot-Deléry and Julie Pailhès. In 2018, the firm launched Gide 255, a new service for clients looking for advice on advanced technologies. This new practice is headed by fintech specialist Franck Guiader.

Gowling WLG is recommended for contentious and non-contentious soft IP work. Céline Bey leads the firm’s IP practice in Paris. She is supported by IP Star Marianne Schaffner, who joined the firm in 2024.

Boutique IP firm Havard Duclos & Associés was founded in September 2022 by soft IP lawyer Sophie Havard Duclos, who specialises in trade mark work. Duclos is supported by her previous junior colleagues including Constance Percevaux and Pauline Casanova, who are now partners in her firm.

Herbert Smith Freehills is a full-service law firm with a French IP practice that is focused on contentious proceedings in courts and IP offices. The firm’s IP practice is closely aligned with its TMT practice and works with clients from the luxury goods, technology, financial services, manufacturing, retail and IT sectors. The firm has a strong global presence with offices across the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific region. Key patent litigation contacts at the firm are Alexandra Neri, who heads the firm’s IP and TMT practice, and Frédéric Chevallier, who is co-head of the life sciences practice for the EMEA region. Neri is also a key contact for soft IP. Counsel Sébastien Proust is an expert in IP and e-commerce law.

In March 2018, boutique IP firm Hoyng Rokh Monegier merged with French patent litigation firm Véron & Associés to form Hoyng Rokh Monegier Véron. The merger brought together some of the brightest IP litigators in the French market, serving clients in different sectors including telecoms and life sciences. The firm’s distinction is found in cross-border IP litigation due to its multinational European team. The patent litigation stars in the new entity are managing partner Benoît Strowel, Denis Monégier du Sorbier, Sophie Micallef, Sabine Agé, Amandine Métier and Florence Jacquand. 

The founders of Inlex IP Expertise split the firm into two entities in July 2023. One, operating under a different name in France, is led by Eric Schahl, while the other under Franck Soutoul's leadership operates as INLEX in France and other jurisdictions.

Ipsilon is recommended for trade mark and patent protection work. The firm is led by European patent attorney Valérie Feray. The patent leaders in the firm are Maxime Petit, who specialises in mechanics and physics; Wilfried Peguet, who deals with chemistry work; Ghislain Demonda, a computer science and telecoms specialist; Valerie Godineau, who specialises in mechanical engineering and physics; and Sylvie Hervouet-Malbec, who handles electronics and telecoms work. Other notable patent practitioners are Pierre Jeannequin and Laurent Nuss. Géraldine Calvet and Hugues Dutreix are practitioners to watch.

For trade marks, clients have senior brand specialists such as Florence Briec, Michèle Dietrich-Schnell, Marion Vidal-Lachaud and Clémence Touiller. The partners are supported by junior practitioners including Audrey Lachaud and Guillaume Dubard.

The firm has grown in size and presence in Europe thanks to the financial backing of Waterland Private Equity.

Jacobacci Avocats is recommended for IP disputes work. Jean-Mathieu Bertho and Olympe Vanner are key practitioners in the firm. Alexia de Maulde is a partner in the firm who can advise on brand protection.

Jeantet's IP practice was strengthened in 2025 when Aramis co-founder and IP litigator Benjamin May and his team joined the firm.

Laude Esquier Champey was recognised for trade mark disputes in the 2022 edition of IP STARS. The firm lost its ranking following the departure of Sophie Havard Duclos and her team.

Linklaters is a full-service international law firm with a French IP practice that is recommended for patent disputes. The firm also handles contentious trade mark matters, and transactional matters such as due diligence and contractual agreements. The team has access to the firm’s global IP team which is spread across the Asia-Pacific region, the US, and Europe. 

Pauline Debré heads the IP and TMT practice in the Paris office. Debré is supported by managing associate Jean-François Merdrignac and associate Simon Corbineau-Picci.

Marks & Clerk's IP practice in France became Atout Pi Laplace in August 2022.

International law firm Pinsent Masonsdeals with patent disputes in France and across Europe. It also has a growing transactional practice. It has a sector-focused approach and members have industry experience, which affords them an understanding of the challenges and priorities of their clients. The team is recognised for its expertise on both contentious and non-contentious complex cross-border IP matters and continues to develop a full range of IP-related services covering patent litigation, designs and IP counsel.IP star Emmanuel Gougé heads the French IP practice. He is supported by legal director Virginia de Freitas.  

Reed Smith is recommended for IP disputes in France. The firm hired IP Star Marianne Schaffner in 2019 to lead its French IP practice and European patent litigation practice. Schaffner is supported by copyright specialist Sophie Goossens and a team of associates.

French IP firm Regimbeau is highly recommended for IP protection and portfolio management. It has experienced patent attorneys in sectors such as life sciences, chemistry, IT and mechanical engineering. The firm has several offices in France and a branch in Munich. Jean-Robert Callon de Lamarck, Frédérique Durieux, and Sylvain Thivillier are among the key patent practitioners in the firm.

For trade marks, clients have experienced practitioners like Martine Bloch-Weill, Isabelle Thill and Olivier Prats. The partners are supported by a team of junior patent and trade mark attorneys and technical specialists.

In May 2023, Gide Loyrette Nouel and Regimbeau announced a partnership to handle Unified Patent Court litigation.

Santarelli is a leading name in France for IP registration and portfolio management work. Its patent attorneys are highly regarded by rivals for patent prosecution, litigation support and portfolio management work. The firm has strong expertise in technical fields such as biotechnology, pharmaceutical, telecoms and mechanical engineering. Laurent Kurtz leads the patent department and is renowned for engineering. He is supported by other partners such as computer scientist Ghislain de Trémiolles, engineering specialist François Lepelletier-Beaufond and telecoms specialist Luc Santarelli. Eric Le Bihan is a key contact for trade mark work.

In March 2021, Ipside, Santarelli and Brevalex publicly announced a merger to form a new firm called Santarelli Group.

Schertenleib Avocats is a boutique firm known for patent litigation in France in high-technology matters and life sciences. Casework recurrently features cross-border litigation for leading multinationals invested in complex IP mandates. In the life sciences, it advises on supplementary protection certificates, regulatory law and data protection. Partner Denis Schertenleib leads with Ombeline Degreze-Pechade.

Szleper Henry is an IP boutique that is recommended for IP disputes. The firm was founded by IP Stars Guillaume Henry and Dariusz Szleper. The firm changed its name to Szleper Henry Naumann in 2022 following the arrival of IP Star Stefan Naumann, who specialises in soft IP work including domain names. The partners are supported by a small team of associates.

Former Gide Loyrette Nouel's IP disputes partner Grégoire Triet joined Taliens in 2022. Triet will be supported by partners Jean-Frédéric Gaultier and Clara Steinitz, who established the firm's Paris office. Steinitz specialises in soft IP work while Gaultier is an IP litigator.

Trade mark attorney firm TMark Conseils continues to be recommended for prosecution in France. François Deschamps is the managing partner of the firm. The other notable practitioners for trade marks and designs are Valérie Dorey, Olivier Thrierr, Nadine Royer and Nicolas Debaisieux.

Atout Pi Laplace, which is part of the Vidon IP Group, was created in August 2022 from Marks & Clerk's IP business in France. Former Marks & Clerk managing partner Enrico Priori serves as a director in the new firm. Another notable IP practitioner is Clémence Touillier, who specialises in trade mark law.