FTPA has strengthened its Intellectual Property practice with the arrival of Arnaud Michel as a partner. Arnaud Michel’s arrival reflects the firm’s commitment to expand its international footprint.
FTPA has appointed Arnaud Michel, leading intellectual property lawyer, as a partner. He has over 40 years of international experience. A recognised specialist in intellectual property law, he advises and represents his clients in trademark, design, copyright and patent law, under French and European law. He mainly assists European and American clients from a wide range of sectors such as luxury goods, textiles, toys, automotive, show business and pharmaceuticals. He is regularly involved in litigations abroad, in particular in Turkey, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco.
Arnaud Michel joins FTPA’s Intellectual Property team made up of six lawyers, including partner Antoine Gautier-Sauvagnac, and counsel Hélène Huet, with whom he will work in a spirit of synergy and common inclusion.
After studying law at the University of Paris II, Arnaud Michel begins his career in the U.K. in 1978 where he lectures in community law at the French Institute in London, the Law Society and the University of Exeter. His first law firm experience is with Lee Bolton & Lee in London. As a young lawyer at the Paris Bar, he decides to return to France in 1980 and to focus on an international practice. He soon joins Gide in 1981, as an associate, and, under the leadership of the future Batonnier Burguburu, handles intellectual property cases. As a convinced European, Gide entrusts him in 1986 with the management of the Brussels office where he stays until 1993. While in Brussels, the firm continues to grow, and Arnaud Michel is appointed partner on 1 January 1988. He works on international trade law cases and is a lawyer for the European Council and the European Commission. He also appears before the Court of Justice of the European Union on several occasions.
His portfolio includes large international companies, particularly from Asia. He becomes the lawyer of Chinese state-owned entities in all international trade law cases initiated by the EU authorities. Simultaneously, the Chinese government asks him to take the lead of the drafting of the country’s anti-dumping and anti-subsidy regulations. As a true lawmaker, he also heads the drafting of trademarks and designs legislation in Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria.
In competition law, he participates in the Amadeus project, which transforms European air transport. He is also involved in setting the rules of selective distribution for the Yves Saint-Laurent company. Two cases that set the standard in European competition law.
Back in Paris in 1993, he takes part in the development of Gide’s Intellectual Property department and contributes with his knowledge and vision of the community. As a member of the Board of Directors of the French Chamber of Commerce in Brussels, he continues his close relationship with the leaders of major French companies. Always in tune with his clients’ issues and eager to be close to their economic reality, he actively participates in targeted professional organisations. He has been a member of the Association des praticiens des marques et des modèles (APRAM) since the 1980s and joined its board of directors in the 1990s before becoming its president from 2000 to 2002.
In the area of technology transfer, patents, and know-how, he becomes a member of the Licensing Executive Society France (LES), which promotes technology transfer among French and international companies. He is a member of the Board of Directors in the 1990s, and then President from 2001 to 2004. Also active at the level of LES International (LESI), he directs the European Committee, influencing the Brussels authorities. He becomes President of the LESI in 2015, strengthening his international network of high-level industrial property decision-makers.
During this period, he also supports the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on numerous occasions in different countries of the world, as an expert, to help in the training programme for managers in technology transfer.
“My priority has always been to offer my clients a high-quality human and material environment, favourable to the development of our relationship, in a climate of trust. FTPA’s flexible and entrepreneurial approach is very much in tune with the actual needs of our clients. On a more personal note, I am delighted to be joining a firm that is aligned with the aspirations and human values I believe in. I am convinced that success goes beyond legal expertise, and that it is also achieved through relationships with others: when it is great, it is shared more,” says Arnaud Michel, partner.
“Thanks to his first-rate network in the world of intellectual property, Arnaud strengthens our team’s international influence. His experience as an accomplished specialist, gained through high-stakes cases, is a perfect match with the talents of our team. Approachable and attentive to others, especially the younger generations, he is a true Team Player who is keen to share and pass on his knowledge. We are delighted to welcome him“, adds Antoine Gautier-Sauvagnac, partner.
