Located in the heart of one of the world’s fashion capitals, this year’s Paris Fashion Law & Innovation Conference at La Maison du Barreau is chock-full of the latest news and analysis on trademark law, anti-counterfeiting strategies, and changes in social media marketing and fashion. By combining a deep industry knowledge with fundamental legal and business principles underlying the U.S. and French fashion industries, this is a conference not to be missed! Attendees will enjoy a Welcome Breakfast presented by co-chairs Céline Bondard (Cabinet Bondard) and Olivera Medenica (Dunnington Bartholow & Miller LLP). Visit fedbar.org/parisfashionlaw19.
The Federal Bar Association, in collaboration with the French American Bar Association, is excited to have you join us in Paris on Friday, October 4, 2019. Programming will feature a notable group of attorneys and industry representatives who will discuss recent developments and current challenges from both the French and U.S. perspective.
Olivera Medenica, co-chair of the Paris Fashion Law & Innovation Conference, is a partner and member of Dunnington’s intellectual property, advertising, art and fashion law, international, and litigation and arbitration practice areas. She is also the founder of the annual Fashion Law Conference hosted by the Federal Bar Association in New York and Paris. Below, she discusses the unique qualities of this year’s conference.
FBA: What makes the 2019 Paris Fashion Law & Innovation Conference distinctive? What can attendees of this year’s conference look forward to?
Olivera Medenica: The conference is in its third year, and, as with previous conferences, we are focusing on a comparative legal approach to two judicial systems—the EU and the U.S. We are addressing topics that are critical to the fashion industry and insightful to in-house counsel because it addresses pragmatic approaches to intellectual property, advertising, and social media concerns. As brands expand in different geographic regions, it is important to get the perspective of counsel who are well-versed in both. Our panel of speakers provides business and legal insight from both in-house and outside counsel perspectives.
FBA: What are some highlights of the Paris Fashion Law & Innovation Conference?
Olivera Medenica: We are fortunate to have Paola Piccoli (Head of Brand Enforcement, Maus Freres International Services), Fleur Allain (General Counsel, Sonia Rykiel), Magali Jalade (Director of Public and Regulatory Affairs, Autorité de Régulation Professionnelle de la Publicité), and Delphine Sarfati-Sobreira (General Manager, Union des Fabricants) as panelists.
FBA: Tell us about the location of this year’s conference and what people can look forward to attending the conference at La Maison du Barreau.
Olivera Medenica: La Maison du Barreau is the heart of a Parisian attorney’s CLE life. This is the place where both the law society and bar association organize events, conferences, and networking programs. Our conference will take place in the beautiful auditorium, the largest room in the entire Maison du Barreau. The Maison du Barreau is centrally located in Île Saint Louis, a historic neighborhood and one of the most beautiful in Paris.
FBA: What is your role in bringing this conference to fruition?
Olivera Medenica: I launched the New York Fashion Conference back in 2013 with the Federal Bar Association. The conference has been incredibly successful since its inception and has always approached fashion law from a business perspective, as opposed to an academic or overly legal review of the issues. The goal of the conference is to address not only in-house counsel but also key business leaders in the fashion industry. The issues we cover are critical and current.
The Paris conference started three years ago, as we saw a need to address issues from an EU-U.S. perspective. The fashion industry has so many key players in Paris, and the legal issues of the EU and the U.S can sometimes be vastly different. It is the rare brand that only sells in a limited location, as everything has become so global. This conference focuses on those issues, with a special emphasis on those faced by innovative businesses.
Céline Bondard was a natural fit for this conference, as I have known her for many years and she is a natural leader in both legal communities. She co-founded FABA, the French-American Bar Association in 2007 in New York, then in 2011 in Paris. Thomas Vandenabeele is the President of FABA in New York and Céline Bondard is the President of FABA in Paris. The association holds many events every year on both coasts, for the benefit of the American and French legal communities.
The Paris Fashion Law & Innovation Conference is October 4th and an ideal opportunity to examine the business realities and practicalities that must be considered when practicing law in the fashion industry. Hurry! Registration for this unique opportunity ends Thursday, October 3rd. fedbar.org/parisfashionlaw19.
About the Author
Stacy Slotnick, Esq. holds a J.D., cum laude, from Touro Law Center and a B.A., summa cum laude, from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She performs a broad range of duties as an entertainment lawyer, including drafting and negotiating contracts; addressing and litigating trademark, copyright, patent, and other IP issues; and directing the strategy and implementation of public relations, blogging, and social media campaigns.
About the FBA
Founded in 1920, the Federal Bar Association is dedicated to the advancement of the science of jurisprudence and to promoting the welfare, interests, education, and professional development of all attorneys involved in federal law. Our more than 16,000 members run the gamut of federal practice: attorneys practicing in small to large legal firms, attorneys in corporations and federal agencies, and members of the judiciary. The FBA is the catalyst for communication between the bar and the bench, as well as the private and public sectors. Visit us at fedbar.org to learn more.
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