Moderator: Andrew Hicks - Field Law (CA)

Andrew Hicks is a senior patent agent in Canmore office of Field Law.  He has over 25 years’ experience in the preparation, prosecution, and management of complex patent portfolios.

He began his career as a research engineer in Ottawa with a large multi-disciplinary biomedical engineering project before joining the patent profession in 1991. When he left the engineering world, he began his patent career in Ottawa with one of Canada’s largest IP firms.

Andrew’s practice is diverse, representing a wide variety of domestic and foreign clients before the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO). His practice is focused on the creation and management of patent portfolios for domestic clients and devising appropriate domestic and international IP strategies to match the business objectives of his clients.

He has contributed to the creation of IP portfolios across a wide range of technical disciplines including biochemistry, chemical engineering, chemistry, mechanical engineering, biomedical engineering, high technology and all aspects of the energy and oil and gas industries.

Afida Bensaoud - Art Log (FR)

CrossBreeding between Morocco/China and Europe, I became involved in logistics and the supply chain, with an innovation-focused approach. My dream of ART LOG Groupe in October 2016 marked the start of an adventure aimed at rethinking the global supply chain, with a presence in France, China and Morocco. My aim has always been to bring concrete improvements to logistics, notably through the integration of advanced technologies to improve the efficiency and transparency of operations.
 
With a Master 2 in International Supply Chain from Université Paris-Dauphine and a Master 2 in International Trade and Export Marketing from Université Vincennes-Saint-Denis, I have acquired a solid foundation that has enabled me to develop innovative projects. I have sought to combine innovation and management with pragmatism, resulting in successful projects both operationally and in terms of logistical innovation.
 
I have managed projects for customers such as UBER Eats, LVMH-Hennessy, Christian Louboutin, and even the Italian government during the COVID crisis. These experiences have underlined my ability to navigate complex situations and apply innovative solutions in the face of significant challenges. My experience in negotiating and managing international contracts, combined with a strategic approach to purchasing, has helped me optimise costs and improve overall performance. 

Levente Pethő - Danubia Group (HU)

Levente Pethő is a partner at Danubia Patent and Law Office, CEO of Danubia IP Innovation Consulting, vice-chair of the international LESI IP Valuation Committee and board member of LES Hungary. He is holding an MSc in Economics and obtained a qualification in industrial property rights protection and management by the Hungarian Intellectual Property Office.

Levente joined Danubia Group in 2012 and is currently responsible for the IP Valuation and IP management services within the firm, where he has led numerous IP Valuation projects, including transfer pricing, accounting, investment and transaction related assignments with respect to different forms of IP across multiple sectors of industry. He has experience in negotiating and structuring tech-transfer transactions, and has been working with multinational companies from Asia, North-America and Western Europe in setting up and optimizing their cross-border IP management processes, with special consideration to the regulation of inventions under employment, taxation and transfer pricing.

Recently, he has been working on creating the first comprehensive IP valuation training and certification program at AMAVI and acting as an IP valuation and monetization expert in a number of projects with the EU and the Hungarian authorities. 

André Gorius - Winnotek (FR)

André Gorius graduated from the Ecole Normale Supérieure (Paris, 1985), where he obtained a PhD and became « Professeur Agrégé » in Physics. In 1988, he obtained a PhD and Habilitation (“Doctorat d’Etat ès Sciences”) in Chemical Engineering. 

During his career in the Solvay Group since more than 30 years, he occupied various management positions such as R&D Director and Industrial Director in France, USA and Italy.

From 2006, he has been involved in the economic aspects of technology transfers, was Licensing Director, and created the position of Intellectual Assets Valorization Director he occupied until June 2019. In this position, I was in charge of all IP valuations concerning M&A, Acquisition, Sale and Licensing of IP assets, Tax and Transfer Pricing, and as a support to litigations.

Dr Gorius created in 2016 the IP Valuation Committee of LES France (Licensing Executives Society France), and chaired the worldwide LESI IP Valuation Committee (2017-2022), is presently International IP Valuation Expert for WIPO, teaches Intangible to Assets Valuation at EMLyon Business school (France), and IP Valuation to professionals on an international basis, for example in TU Wien (Vienna, Austria, 2021), National University of Singapore (2022) and DOST-PCAARD and LES Philippines (2023: 2 sessions). He is a founding member and Board member of AMAVI (Association for Management and Valuation of Intangibles).