Legal skills
Intellectual property law
Derriennic Associates assists its clients in developing and implementing strategies for the management, exploitation, and protection of their intangible assets. In this capacity, we act both as advisors and as litigators. Our firm has expertise across all areas of intellectual property, information technology, and related sectors, assisting clients in diverse industries, including:
- IT
- E-commerce
- Media and publishing
- Advertising and event communications
- Insurance
- Banking and finance
- Pharmaceutical laboratories
- Industry
- Defence and security
- Construction and architecture
- Trademarks, industrial designs, models, and domain names
We support our clients in the strategic management of their distinctive marks and identifiers, providing:
- Advice on protection strategies for distinctive signs
- Trademark, industrial design, and domain name research, filing, and opposition management in France and abroad
- Audits of trademarks, domain names, industrial designs, models, and other intellectual property assets in the context of acquisitions, divestitures, or restructuring
- Drafting of licensing, franchise, and distribution agreements
- Structuring partial asset contributions, managed licensing, or other corporate restructuring operations
We also defend our clients’ trademarks and domain names before judicial, administrative, and arbitration authorities, including the WIPO arbitration tribunal, handling:
- Oppositions, infringement actions, cancellations, disqualifications, claims, and customs seizures
- Preventive actions targeting professionals, consumers, and public or international authorities
- Patents
Our firm assists clients in developing strategies to protect their technical assets, in collaboration with industrial property counsel, including:
- Patent infringement and nullity litigation
- Judicial audits of patent portfolios and know-how contracts
- Drafting of research and development, technical cooperation, and technology transfer agreements
Our patent expertise covers all industrial sectors, with particular strength in IT, telecommunications, and heavy industry.
Copyright and Related Rights
We provide proactive support to define and protect our clients’ intellectual property rights, drafting agreements for acquisition, licensing, or transfer, and establishing appropriate remuneration policies for authors and other beneficiaries. We also provide full litigation support in these matters, both in claim and defense.
Audit and Exploitation of Intellectual Assets
Derriennic Associates has developed a comprehensive “Intangible Assets” service, enabling companies to evaluate, manage, and exploit their intellectual and intangible capital. This framework allows businesses to produce detailed reports on their intangible assets, which can be integrated into their financial statements.
While copyright and intellectual property protections cover some intangible assets, many critical elements—such as commercial methods, service outsourcing contracts, know-how, communication media, and industrial processes—may not be fully protected under the French Intellectual Property Code or trade secret legislation.
Intangible capital typically includes:
- Human capital: skills, knowledge, creativity, motivation, and work methods
- Organizational capital: procedures, systems, databases, processes, values, and culture
- Relational capital: client, supplier, partner, network, and regulator relationships
This raises essential questions for businesses:
- How can intangible assets be effectively capitalized?
- What are the benefits of doing so?
- How should these assets be represented in financial statements?
Intangible capital encompasses all non-monetary, non-physical assets that contribute to the production and delivery of goods and services. It includes not only R&D capabilities but increasingly spans all functions of an organization—marketing, procurement, production, logistics, IT, and legal management.
Properly understood and managed, intangible capital can become a powerful lever for growth. Best practices in this area are now being formalized, allowing businesses to standardize, measure, and report on their intangible assets, providing clarity for investors and aligning with financial reporting standards.
License Management and Software Audits
Derriennic Associates has developed recognized expertise in software license auditing, assisting both large international groups and SMEs. We analyze contracts, assess risks, and address both technical aspects (rights acquired, metrics) and legal considerations, leveraging our extensive experience and jurisprudence.
Team : François-Pierre LANI, Pierre-Yves MARGNOUX, Alexandre FIEVEE, Emmanuel BENOIT, Clara PAYAN, Anne COUSIN, Jérémy CARDENAS, Géraldine PACAUT, Alice ROBERT, Sophie DUPERRAY, Nathalie ARAUJO, Eugénie LEBELLE, Océane DESPLANDS,