Marcin Fijalkowski | People

Biography

Marcin Fijałkowski heads the IP team in the Warsaw office. He has been practicing law in the field of intellectual property since 2003. He represents clients before civil, criminal and administrative courts, the Polish Patent Office, the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and the Warsaw Arbitration Court for Domain Names. Marcin has also worked in the Baker McKenzie Zurich office on Pan-European IP enforcement programs. Marcin Fijałkowski is registered with the European Patent Institute (EPI), and is a professional legal representative for the EUIPO in Alicante. Marcin is a member of INTA, Marques and AIPPI and represents the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI) Enforcement Committee in front of the EU Observatory. He is recommended as a leading individual in the area of intellectual property in Poland by various international rankings, such as: Chambers Europe, Legal 500, World Trademark Review and Managing Intellectual Property.

Practice Focus

Marcin focuses his practice on IP enforcement and prosecution, civil and criminal litigation, copyright law and unfair competition law. He offers sound knowledge in handling important IP portfolios of international firms in various industries, including pharmaceutical, tobacco and FMCG sectors.

Representative Legal Matters

Successfully represented one of Poland's biggest producers of confectionery regarding their most renowned brand, which helped the client to create and implement a strategy which led to reacquiring the distinctiveness of their degenerated trademark after a 10-year legal battle consisting of a series of litigation proceedings.
Represented a multinational pharmaceutical company in a major patent litigation case over an insulin pen. This litigation case involved the issue of enforcing European patents under Polish law, and in particular the interpretation of patent claims written from a functional perspective.
Advising an American multinational conglomerate corporation operating in the fields of industry, worker safety, health care, and consumer goods in domain name arbitration cases, trade mark infringement cases, anti-counterfeiting cases, patent filings and IP commercial.
Represented a European sports association in connection with intellectual property issues such as litigation against a Polish tour operator for unfair competition and trade mark infringement.
Advising a social media company with respect to the alleged infringement of third party trademark rights by our client’s communities. These matters have a significant influence on the client’s policy with respect to take-down notices reported from Polish entities and with respect to content available to Polish social media users.
Advised an American multinational technology company with respect to a number of proceedings that target fake online stores. These stores misrepresent themselves as our client’s authorized resellers, often sell fake products and use the client's trademarks on their websites and domain names containing the client's trademarks.
Representing a multinational FMCG company in an unfair competition litigation case against one of its main competitors in Poland. The defendant introduced a new series of ice-creams on the Polish market in similar packaging to our client’s series.
Advised a multinational Asian conglomerate on its marketing agreements related to the launch of new advertisement campaigns.

Professional Honors

'ꞌ(…) Trademark guru Marcin Fijalkowski successfully defended Unilever before the Polish Supreme Court in a landmark dispute regarding its green bottle shape mark. It was a precedent-setting decision in which the Supreme Administrative Court ruled for the first time on three-dimensional (3D) trademarks used without the label. Commentators laud Fijalkowski as a “reliable litigator and patient and skilled negotiator”. “He has the ideal blend of encyclopaedic knowledge and a practical approach and he never overlooks the business aspects involved. Marcin is very approachable and easy to partner with, and he maintains a good sense of humour even when things get stressful.” Fijalkowski is credited with building the firm’s reputable prosecution practice, which is another of his specialities.'ꞌ World Trademark Review 2019
Ranked as Trademark Star in Managing IP 2019
'ꞌHeading the IP practice, Marcin Fijalkowski is a highly respected practitioner within Poland'd s IP market. He is particularly active on contentious matters, including patent litigation and IP rights enforcement. A source calls him "a tough opponent" in disputes while a client praises his "detailed knowledge and practical experience," adding that he "does not propose actions that do not fit the client." He regularly represents clients from the pharmaceutical industry and is also a patent attorney. 'ꞌ Chambers Europe 2018
Recommended for IP in Legal500 EMEA 2018
'ꞌFijalkowski is adored by brand owners from all corners of the market and is known to be a smart, articulate lawyer who is very easy to work with. The first and last point of contact for many rights holders, he is an experienced professional with very wide and detailed knowledge, and a rare ability to give fast and accurate recommendations." World Trademark Review 2018

Professional Associations and Memberships

Warsaw District Chamber of Legal Advisers - Member
Polish Association of Patent Attorneys - Member
Institute of Professional Representatives before the European Patent Office (EPI) - Member
AIPPI - Secretary of the Polish National Group
INTA - Member
Marques - Association of European Trademark Owners - Member
Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market - Member

Admissions

Poland (2007)

Education

HEC Paris (2002)
Warsaw School of Economics (Master of Arts) (2001)
University of Warsaw (Master of Arts) (2000)

Languages

English
French
Polish

Previous Offices

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