Our IP team comprises experienced lawyers specialising in intellectual property law and litigation, as well as Bulgarian and European trademark attorneys with both legal and economic backgrounds. This diverse expertise allows us to develop creative and practical solutions tailored to our clients’ needs.
We offer a full spectrum of IP services, including prosecution, portfolio development, strategic transactions, enforcement, litigation, and counseling. Our team advises domestic and foreign clients – from global corporations to mid-sized companies and start-ups – on both contentious and non-contentious matters in the fields of trademarks, designs, patents, copyrights, trade secrets, and more.
Our IP team represents clients before the Bulgarian Patent Office, the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), the European Patent Office, the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), the Bulgarian customs authorities, and the Bulgarian courts.
We have advised numerous clients from various industries, such as technology, pharmaceuticals, fashion, food and beverages, tobacco, retail, and others, on all aspects related to acquiring, protecting, and enforcing their IP rights.
In particular, our IP team has:
- A strong trademark and design portfolio management and prosecution practice
- Solid experience in trademark opposition and cancellation proceedings
- A dedicated team of attorneys and associates to assist clients with the national validation of European patents and filing and prosecution of SPC applications before the Bulgarian Patent Office
- In-depth understanding and experience in pharmaceutical IP law
- Cutting-edge enforcement expertise in cases of trademark, design, patent, and copyright infringements
- Extensive IP litigation practice, predominantly in cases with a high degree of complexity, including unfair competition related to trademark or design imitation
- Significant experience in alternative dispute resolution of IP-related disputes
- Deep transactional knowledge and years of deal experience, including structuring, negotiating, and executing various IP-related agreements
In brief, we know how to both protect and enforce IP rights, particularly in the digital realm.
Rankings:
Recognitions received by the IP team in 2022-2024:
- The IP Practice is ranked in the Gold Band for Bulgaria in The World’s Leading Trademark Professionals 2022, 2023, and 2024 by World Trademark Review 1000.
- Gold Award in the category of ‘Best IP Advisor Central Eastern Europe’ at the Leaders League Alliance Summit 2023.
- A First-tier Firm in Trademarks and a Highly Recommended Firm in Patents in the 2022, 2023, and 2024 rankings of the IP Stars handbook of Managing Intellectual Property.
- Bulgaria Firm of the Year for 2024 by The Managing IP Awards
- Ranked Tier 1 Firm for Intellectual Property by The Legal 500 in its 2022, 2023 and 2024 EMEA editions.
- Ranked Band 1 Firm for Intellectual Property by Chambers Europe in its 2022, 2023 and 2024 editions.
Notable deals and cases
- Advising WD-40: Assisted the American manufacturer of household and multi-use products, including its signature WD-40 penetrating oil, with various cases related to the enforcement of their IP rights in Bulgaria
- Advising Philip Morris International: For over 30 years, we have advised Philip Morris International on customs seizures of counterfeit and contraband goods bearing the client’s trademarks. This includes enforcement proceedings against infringers, initiation of criminal proceedings, and destruction of counterfeit goods.
- Advising Apollo Automobile Limited: Provided counsel to this leading name in the sports car and hypercar industry regarding a settlement with an applicant of a conflicting trademark
- Advising F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd.: For more than 15 years, we have managed their patent portfolio in Bulgaria, including validation of European patents, recordal of patent assignments, filing and prosecution of SPC applications, and other services with the Bulgarian Patent Office
- Advising LEGO: Represented LEGO in several complex copyright, design, and trademark infringement lawsuits and unfair competition cases against importers of infringing goods
- Advising Brouwerij L. Huyghe: Assisted one of Belgium’s largest breweries, known for its DELIRIUM beers, in opposition proceedings before the Bulgarian Patent Office
- Advising Siemens Software PLM Inc.: Addressed issues of software piracy involving the installation and use of illegal copies of Siemens software products
- Advising a Spanish Fashion Company: Represented the owner of the brand “ESCORPION” in opposition to the registration of a conflicting trademark.
- Advising Hilti Corporation: Assisted the client in customs seizures of goods infringing the client’s trademarks and designs, including enforcement proceedings against importers and filing criminal complaints for IP rights infringement and destruction of counterfeit goods.
