Pauline Debré

Experience

Pauline heads the IP/TMT practice of Linklaters in Paris and has considerable experience in IP litigation and specifically patent litigation. 

She focuses on handling complex cross-border patent and trademark litigations, notably in the healthcare and telecommunications sectors. She assists major clients in all types of proceedings, including preliminary injunctions, seizures (saisie-contrefaçon), revocation and infringement actions, arbitration and mediation, often in a global context (parallel litigation in the US, pending oppositions before the EPO). 

Pauline works in close coordination with our competition experts, notably on standard essential patents related cases. 

Pauline also assists clients from various industries with negotiating and drafting contracts related to IP rights (JV agreements, R&D agreements, co-existence agreements) and on projects and corporate deals (acquisitions, carve out) where IP is a key asset.

Pauline co-heads the Patent Commission of the French group of AIPPI, as well as the Standing Committee on Patents and Standards. She is also a member of EPLAW (European Patent Lawyers association), APRAM, APEB and LES.

Pauline is ranked amongst France’s best IP lawyers.

Her team is ranked Band 1 by Legal 500 (2020) and won the Award of the Best patent team in 2020 (Trophées du Droit, Leaders League 2020).

Individually, Pauline is ranked as:

• Leading individual: "one of the top patent litigators on the French market" (Legal 500 - 2020)
  
• Among the 30 best patent lawyers in France: an "extremely good professional” who is "recognised for her superb work on cross-border cases in the areas of telecoms and healthcare" (Who’s Who Legal 2020)
  
• Described as "notably strong in contentious IP matters, with sources deeming her to be " an outstanding litigator." She regularly assists with patent infringement actions across the pharmaceutical, technology and energy sectors. She is additionally experienced in trade mark issues.” (Chambers- 2020)
  
• "Patent Star" and "Trademark Star" (Managing IP -2020)
  
• Ranked by Best Lawyers 2020
  

Recent experience includes: 

• Assisting and representing a company specialised in professional and recreational scuba diving equipment in disputes relating to infringement of designs and patents covering masks;
• Assisting and representing a pharmaceutical company in a revocation action about a patent covering a nanoparticle composition of an anti-emetic drug;
• Assisting and representing a computer systems and semiconductor chip manufacturer in a patent infringement action related to patents essential to the ADSL standards;
• Advising a food and healthcare company in connection with the creation of a joint venture with dedicated to the microbiome diagnosis, negotiating related license and service agreements;
• Assisting and representing a pharmaceutical company in a global patent infringement action related to a patent covering monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of LDL cholesterol;
• Assisting and representing a pharmaceutical company in a global dispute, involving the US, UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, India, Mexico, Australia relating to the use of its corporate name, business name and trademarks;
• Assisting the R&D centre of an international luxury group in the context of the negotiation of a cooperation and research agreement with a Japanese University for the development of substances for the cosmetics industry
• Assisting and representing a French company in a dispute relating to patent and know how covering smart meters (infringement proceedings and mediation);
• Assisting and representing a US pharmaceutical company in a dispute related to an employee’s additional remuneration for patents in the field of hepatitis treatment;
• Advising and assisting a company specialised in the development of M2M equipment and services in a dispute and arbitration related to essential patent licences covering 2G and 3G standards;
• Assisting and representing a dental pharmaceuticals and consumables company in a patent dispute related to medical devices (syringe tips) involving France, Germany and the UK; 

Recent publications, lectures and conferences:

• “Coronavirus Pandemic Puts Patent System Debate Back in the Spotlight”, L’Express, 16 April 2020 (link)
• “Carmakers’ designs on patents for the future”, Financial Times, 8 July 2019 (quote)
• "Automotives: the next battlefield of SEP litigation?”, World IP Review, 1st July 2019 (link)
• “Paris Court of Appeal rejects FRAND claims”, Commercial Dispute Resolution Magazine, 25 April 2019 (quote)
• Co-Author of the French chapter of the Patent Litigation Law Review – Edition 3, November 2019
• Redaction of the article "The Frandomnes of Essential Patents", (FRANDez-vous en terre inconnue), published in Propriété Industrielle in December 2018 (co-written with Simon Corbineau-Picci)
• Co-Author of the French chapter of the guide “Compulsory licensing in Europe – a country-by-country overview” published by the EPO, 2018 Propriété Industrielle, Lexis Nexis, April 2018
• “Applying statutes of limitation to patent revocation actions in France”, EPLAW blog, November 2017 (http://eplaw.org/fr-applying-statutes-of-limitations-to-patent-revocations-in-france/)
• "Keeping up with the changing landscape of FRAND", Global Patent Forum, MIP London, March 2017 
• Lecturer at the CEIPI (Strasbourg, IP Master 2) on International private law and IP (June 2020)
• AIPPI – Last developments on the “saisie-contrefaçon”, 9 January 2020
• IP Seminar by Premier Cercle (Volvo, Gothenburg, Sweden) – “IP in the value chain”, 8-9 October 2019
• FT Future of the Car summit, 2019, London, 14-15 May 2019, organized by the Financial Times. Pauline spoke about “Cars of the future and connectivity standards: a poisoned relationship?”
• Essential patents in the industry: an update, Roundtable of the IP Seminar of Premier Cercle organized at Airbus headquarters, Toulouse, 7th December 2018, led by Pauline Debré
• Patent Forum, MIP, Paris, September 2018, Paris, Panel on Permanent Injunctions and Compulsory licences

Languages

French, English, Spanish