Stephanie de Potter

Stephanie de Potter

Associate
Baker McKenzie BV/SRL

Biography

Stéphanie de Potter is a senior associate in the IPTech Practice Group in the Antwerp office. She joined Baker McKenzie in September 2023.

Stéphanie started her career as a lawyer at a Belgian law firm focused on intellectual property and related practice areas, where she practiced all types of IP disputes and transactions, involving a broad array of industries and technologies.

Practice Focus

Stéphanie focuses on all aspects of IP, covering trade marks, patents, copyright, designs, brand management and digital media. She also assists national and international clients in commercial litigation matters as well as the drafting and negotiating of a wide range of commercial agreements covering, inter alia, the management of intellectual property rights.

Representative Legal Matters

  • Advised a leading telecommunications company on the protection of confidential information, including technical and commercial know-how and trade secrets, in Belgium

  • Represented a Belgian pharmaceutical company against opposition proceedings brought by it before the EUIPO

  • Defended a Belgian fashion company successfully in a trademark, copyright and unfair competition litigation brought against it before the Antwerp cease and desist court by a competitor

  • Represented a family-owned Belgian company active in the construction industry against alleged infringements of a Belgian patent for a device for drilling passages and a method of operation involving such device

  • Represented a leading Belgian pharmaceutical company against a competitor's claim based on breach of fair market practices in relation to an alleged parasitic copy of a package

  • Advised a renowned foreign company producing books, magazines and other articles on the protection of portrait rights and the right to image in Belgium

  • Represented a multinational food company in the appeal before the Benelux Court of Justice against a decision of the BOIP refusing in part the registration of a word mark

  • Represented a company active in the distribution of chocolate moulds in infringement proceedings based on copyright and design rights against a competitor

  • Assisted several companies in drafting and concluding various commercial agreements including exclusivity agreements, non-disclosure agreements, broadcasting and publishing agreements, license agreements, material transfer agreements and copyright contracts

Professional Associations and Memberships

  • Benelux Association for Trademarks and Design Law (BMM) – Member
  • International Association of Young Lawyers (AIJA) – Member

Admissions

  • Antwerp~Belgium (2018)

Education

  • University of Maastricht (Advanced Master in IP Law and Knowledge Management) (2018)
  • University of Antwerp (Master of Laws, cum laude) (2017)
  • University of Antwerp (Law degree) (2015)

Languages

  • Dutch
  • English
  • French

Co-author, The Cambridge Handbook of Copyright in Street Art and Graffiti, Cambridge University Press, November 2019

Co-author, "Over Barbara, Lionel, Quincy en Kenzo: registratie en gebruik van persoonsnamen als merk", TBH 2019/6, 780-787