Frédéric Benech

French

Mediator

40+ years of experience

Language:

English, French

Italian (oral)

Present Function:

Founding partner of Cabinet Benech, a French law firm specializing in industrial and intellectual property law (Since 1994)

General Expertise:

Technical Expertise:

Certifications and/or licenses

Institut Français de Certification des Médiateurs (IFCM) in 2022.

Professional legal or litigation experience related to the scope of competence of the PMAC

Numerous patent, contract, and software litigations, unfair competition before the French, German, Austrian courts, but also in arbitration, both in attack and in defense.
Drafting and filing of patents, in particular European ones, numerous proceedings before the EPO’s examining divisions, opposition divisions and Boards of Appeal, and before foreign offices (USA, Japan, China etc…).

Professional technical experience related to the scope of competence of the PMAC

Worked as a Nuclear Engineer / Inventor at SGN (Société Générale pour les Techniques Nouvelles), in both engineering offices (2 years) and commissioning of installations (5 years) at La Hague and Sellafield (UK).

IP Counsel for 9 years at the firms Plasseraud (3 years) then Gutmann‑Plasseraud (6 years).

Founder and specialist Intellectual Property Lawyer for 31 years at the Benech law firm.

Memberships and/or accreditations

AME (Association des Médiateurs Européens)membre du bureau,
OMPI/WIPO (Organisation Mondiale de la Propriété Intellectuelle) – Centre de Médiation et d’Arbitrage,
IFCM (Institut Français de Certification des Médiateurs),
IBA (International Bar Association),
AFA (Association Française d’Arbitrage),
EPI (Institute of Professional Representative before the European Patent Office),
SFEN (Société Française de l'Energie Nucléaire),
AIPPI (Association Internationale pour la Protection de la Propriété Industrielle), APRAM (Association Française des Praticiens du Droit des Marques et des Modèles),
APEB (Association des Praticiens Européens des Brevets) - Président d'une commission RECHERCHE et INNOVATION – membre du CA,
REPI- (Réseau Entreprises Propriété Industrielle) - Président
PMPI (Promotion de la Mediation en Propriété Intellectuelle) - Vice Président fondateur

Practical experience of conducting mediation or conciliation or judicial settlement conferences or out-of-court dispute settlements in disputes related to the scope of competence of the PMAC

Served as mediator or co‑mediator in dozens of intellectual property mediations over the past ten years. These include judicial mediations ordered by the Judicial Tribunals of Paris or Nanterre and the Paris Court of Appeal, as well as more than a dozen voluntary “conventional” mediations, plus several administered by WIPO and the ICC. The disputes handled covered patents (~20 %), trademarks & unfair competition (~30 %), and contracts & copyright (media, productions, disputes with authors and/or directors, etc.) (~50 %).