You don’t become President of FICPI without a real passion for the organisation and its global community.
The story of Roberto Pistolesi, who was elected President in October 2022, underlines the power of participation and the rewards that FICPI offers members professionally and personally.
Roberto joined FICPI in 2004. However, he recalls the enlightenment about the true value of membership beginning eight years later when he took a key committee assignment:
“My journey with FICPI has been very exciting and rewarding and the best part of it started when I was asked, and I accepted, to become the chair of CET5.
“That is the moment in which I understood that I could really do something for the FICPI global community.
“I strongly encourage all FICPI members to be engaged in a committee, regardless of what it is - that is the best way to connect, share knowledge and grow.”
Prior to becoming President, Roberto served two terms as FICPI Secretary General from 2015 to 2022.
Roberto’s dedication to FICPI even extends to a little modelling to promote events – that profile image, on the theme of the Clash song, ‘London Calling’, was made to publicise the Open Forum in London last year.
Value of FICPI membership
There are words that FICPI consistently uses on its website and in publicity materials to illustrate the value of membership:
“The FICPI business family makes the little bit smaller, bringing independent IP attorneys from around the globe together to connect, share knowledge and grow.”
For Roberto, this idea is the epitome of the power of FICPI membership:
“It is not just a slogan but is the truth. FICPI is a good way to connect, learn and grow both professionally and from a human point of view.
“But we are also, really, a big group of friends and, as friends do, we help each other when needed.
“I like the idea that everywhere in the world there is a colleague I can rely on if I need to ask some advice, which may not necessarily be business-related.
“And this has happened to me many times. Sometimes I am giving and sometimes receiving advice.”
Professional background
Roberto is a partner and CEO of Dragotti & Associati in Milan, Italy, having been a member of the firm for nearly 30 years.
His professional journey began with graduation from Milan University in 1992 with a chemistry degree and then Roberto ascended the professional training hierarchy, becoming an Italian patent agent (1999), trade mark agent (1999) and then a European patent attorney (2000). In 2013, Roberto gained a European patent litigator diploma at the Center for IP Studies at Strasbourg University.
His employment began at Fedegari Autoclavi spa and Nalco Chemicals, now Ecolab, in 1994-1995.
Roberto joined Dragotti & Associati in April 1995.
From 2011 to 2015 he was also adjunct Professor at Milan University, where he taught a course on chemical patent practice to the students of Chemical Science, Biotechnology and Industrial Chemistry.
Areas of expertise
Roberto’s main area of experience is patents in the chemical, pharmaceutical and life science field, having extensive experience in prosecution, opposition and appeal procedures before the EPO, and he has been involved in litigation on an impressive number of blockbuster drugs!
“I am frequently asked to design patent strategies as well as to provide patent infringement and validity opinions. I also have extensive experience in the field of Supplementary Protection Certificates.”
“I have been involved as party expert in several patent litigations before the Italian Courts; in particular, I have been involved in patent litigations concerning the following active principles: alendronic acid (Fosamax), alirocumab (Praulent), atorvastatine (Torvast), cefaclor, citalopram (Celexa), docetaxel (Taxotere), enoxaparine (Lovenox), esomeprazole (Nexium), everolimus (Linevero), phosphatidylserine, gabapentin (Neurontin), irbesartan+HCTZ (Co-Aprovel), latanoprost (Xalatan), olanzapine (Zyprexa), omega-3, omeprazole (Omeprazen), montelukast (Singulair), natalizumab (Tysabri), quetiapine (Seroquel), ramipril, repaglinide (Novonorm), rupatadine, salmeterol + fluticasone, sildenafil (Viagra), tadalafil (Cialis) and terbinafine (Lamisil).”
Recent satisfying professional challenge
Roberto has also been a technical expert of the Court of Milan since 2002 and of the Court of Venice since 2015, where he assists judges in patent infringement and/or validity cases.
In 2023 this role was elevated further when he was appointed as a technical expert by the Board of Appeal at the Court of Milan, in which role Roberto enjoyed a particularly satisfying professional challenge, as he explains:
“I was asked to provide my advice with respect to a possible interference of IP rights.
“After having provided my advice, I filed my request for remuneration with the Board, which was quite a lot higher than usual. My request was fully accepted by the Board, which is per se quite unusual in Italy.
“But what made me very happy was that the remuneration order issued by Board contained the following justification: ‘Taking into account the difficulty, completeness and merit of the service performed’.”
Adding value to clients
Roberto is very clear about the value that he and his colleagues at Dragotti bring to clients:
“Listening to them and providing customised solutions to their problems.
“We do not simply do what the clients ask us to do. First of all, we listen carefully to be sure that what they are asking us to do is indeed the best solution to their needs.”
Roberto adds:
“My firm embodies the principles that have characterised my two terms serving FICPI as Secretary General.
“We are reliable, and we make things happen, regardless of urgency, pressure, and difficulty.”
Changes to the IP profession
Roberto sees a shift emerging in the value of the IP legal profession:
“Many activities that provided a not negligible source of income for IP firms, such as searches, renewals, translations and more in general administrative activities are becoming commodities.
“In my opinion the activity of the IP attorney will thus focus more and more on pure professional advice.”
Final word – outside of work
You did read correctly in the introduction to this profile – Roberto really does enjoy sleeping on the beach. He describes his free time activities as:
“Trying to play golf, all year, surfing and sleeping on the beach in summertime.”
