Béatrice Martinet

Twenty-one of the 35 lawyers working at Sideman & Bancroft are female, while 12 of the firm’s 21 partners are women. How is diversity & inclusion promoted at your firm and why is it important?

Sideman & Bancroft is one of the largest women-owned law firms in America, with two-thirds of women attorneys and a majority of partners being women. We have made a specific commitment to this goal and strive to create the best conditions for women to thrive in the working environment and beyond. In addition to creating a healthy work-life balance, we believe that this commitment adds a unique, strategic business perspective to our legal work that benefits our clients and closely aligns us with their culture and values.

You manage major trademark portfolios for entities of all sizes, from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies. How do you work with clients to establish the most cost-effective solutions for their IP needs?

As a boutique firm, Sideman & Bancroft has a unique flexibility to provide services pursuant to creative billing arrangements. We understand that for budgeting purposes, many clients appreciate certainty when engaging counsel. As a result, we offer several services on a flat-fee basis and work with clients on practical solutions and long-term plans based on their budgets and priorities.

We are committed to offering the best service to all our clients, while keeping a flexible billing model and the ability to scale our services to accommodate the needs of each individual client and matter.

Prior to joining Sideman & Bancroft, you practised for 10 years in France, and now work at both the Paris and California bars. What would you say are the main challenges facing clients in these two jurisdictions?

From an IP perspective, one of the major challenges clients are facing in both Europe and the United States is the explosion of online infringement and the increasingly difficult task of enforcing their rights in a global environment, where infringers can be difficult to identify, prosecute or held accountable for their behaviour.

Data protection rules, while essential to protect our privacy, have also made it more difficult and costly for companies to enforce their rights.

Finally, with the effect of globalisation, IP rights violations are now happening on a global scale, thereby forcing clients to expand their IP portfolio and enforcement efforts on a worldwide basis - thus increasing their protection and enforcement costs.

You previously served as the trademark chair on the Advisory Board of the San Francisco Intellectual Property Law Association. What do you believe to be the qualities that contribute to effective leadership?

I have always thought that good leaders lead by example. If you show your team that you are committed to your work, sensitive to their needs and responsive to their requests, there is a very good chance that they will strive to meet your expectations. When I joined Sideman & Bancroft, we rebuilt – with a few other partners and associates – a robust mentorship programme, pairing each associate with a partner, with the aim of helping interns and associates to grow and strive in their work. These programmes benefit not only our associates and interns, but also partners and the firm, as this has been a great way to strengthen the relationship between partners, associates and interns within the firm, increase retention and identify future leaders.

You have represented clients across a range of industries, namely technology, software, publishing, pharmaceutical, entertainment, cosmetics, fashion and food and beverages. How do you stay up to date on developments in multiple markets?

It is indeed crucial to stay up to date on developments in the law in order to provide effective, accurate and comprehensive legal services to our clients. At Sideman & Bancroft, we have multiple subscriptions to legal reviews, industry reviews and online platforms - including Lexology, which I appreciate because it covers a broad range of topics. I also meet regularly with clients to provide them with updates on legal developments in their industries and ask about their current activities so I can stay up to date on all aspects of their business. Finally, being a member of various local and international associations in my area, such as the SFIPLA in California, APRAM (trademark practitioners’ association) or UNIFAB (manufacturers’ association) in France, and INTA at an international level, has been a very good way for me to stay up to date on legal topics, while creating friendships and great connections in the IP community.