Interview: Laurent Thibon, AIPPI Secretary General
Managing IP is part of the Delinian Group, Delinian Limited, 4 Bouverie Street, London, EC4Y 8AX, Registered in England & Wales, Company number 00954730
Copyright © Delinian Limited and its affiliated companies 2024

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

Interview: Laurent Thibon, AIPPI Secretary General

Thibon-Laurent-100

Laurent Thibon is half-way through his term as AIPPI Secretary General. He spoke to James Nurton about changes to the structure of the association – and to his own role

Thibon-Laurent
Laurent Thibon

The lines of flags along the desks at yesterday’s Executive Committee meeting are a powerful visual symbol of the scope of AIPPI’s global reach. But they are also a reminder that AIPPI is essentially a federal association, built on the strength of its national and regional groups, which now number 66.

At the apex of these groups are three bodies: the Council of Presidents, the Executive Committee and the Bureau. The reforms that have been discussed by the ExCo, and which are approved to be finalised at the General Assembly tomorrow, are designed to streamline the association’s structure, remove duplication of work and ensure that it provides the best possible opportunity for members to become involved and develop their IP knowledge.

“The proposal is essentially to make the ExCo the main decision-making body of the association,” says Laurent Thibon from France, who as AIPPI Secretary General has been at the centre of the proposals for reform. “If these proposals are accepted, the ExCo will be able to vote on everything based on recommendations from the different statutory committees. The Council of Presidents will be better able to help the national and regional groups exchange knowledge and experience.”

Reducing duplication of work

The changes will also affect the Bureau, on which AIPPI’s ­different component parts are represented. In future, there will be an equal number of Bureau members from the Presidency (including the addition of a second vice-president), the Reporter General team and the Secretary General, with the Treasurer General also on board. In due course, the terms of the Reporter General and Secretary General will be staggered so they do not both change at the same time. That will give more continuity in AIPPI’s work.

“The changes may seem confusing, but they will be important in reducing duplication,” says Thibon. “To give just one example: elections used to require recommendations from the nomination committee, which had to be approved by the Council of Presidents and the ExCo. That meant we had to do the work three times.”

Moreover, the structural changes are just one aspect alongside other measures being taken to help AIPPI better serve its members and help them to get involved. This year has also seen the first steps towards Congress becoming paperless, the approval of a 50% reduction in fees for young members (up to 35 years old), full-time academics, judges and officials from national offices and the appointment of John Bochnovic as Executive Director (see article overleaf).

This last change in particular is likely to affect some of the Secretary General’s activities, says Thibon. He believes it is too early to say how exactly things will change, though he added that he would welcome any support in the sometimes all-consuming task of representing AIPPI to the outside world. Whatever happens, he affirms that he will remain closely involved with the running of the association. “I love AIPPI. On the one hand, I enjoy the substantive discussion of IP topics which are always of wide interest, and the tremendous work done by the groups and members. On the other hand, I value the opportunity to make friends from around the world.”

“Ultimately, we should always remember that and make sure everything is working properly so that AIPPI can do the real work of studying IP.”

more from across site and ros bottom lb

More from across our site

A 36-member team from Zhong Lun Law Firm, including six partners, will join the newly formed East IP Group
The Delhi High Court sided with Ericsson against Indian smartphone maker Lava, bringing the companies' nine-year dispute to a close
We provide a rundown of Managing IP’s news and analysis from the week, and review what’s been happening elsewhere in IP
Tennessee has passed the ELVIS Act, a law that fights against AI models that mimic the voice and likeness of music artists
Rob Stien, chief communications and public policy officer at InterDigital, says the EU has forgotten innovators while trying to solve an issue that doesn’t exist
As Australia’s Qantm IP leans towards being acquired by a private equity company, sources discuss what it could mean for IP firms
Law firms that are conscious of their role in society are more likely to win work, according to a survey of over 23,000 in-house professionals
Nghiem Xuan Bac Pham, managing partner of Vision & Associates, discusses opportunities created by the US-China rift as well as profitability issues facing IP practices
Douglas Leite and two of his colleagues were intrigued by Bhering Advogados’s mission to grow its patent litigation practice
Each week Managing IP speaks to a different IP practitioner about their life and career
Gift this article