# Dr. Léon Dijkman Léon advises and represents clients in all areas of intellectual property law, in particular patent law. He is an experienced litigator and appears regularly before the Unified Patent Court (UPC), where he worked on cases concerning aluminum anodization, mRNA delivery, and video streaming, among other technologies. Léon was involved in the first UPC decisions on long-arm jurisdiction and developed a specific expertise on private international law and other procedural aspects of the UPC. In copyright and trade mark matters, Léon’s practice focuses on the fashion and luxury goods industries. He litigates before Dutch and European Union courts, as well as the Benelux and European Union Intellectual Property Offices. His dual soft-IP/patent practice makes him an all-round litigator with a big picture view of the case and an eye for detail. He was recognized again as a Rising Star in the 2025 IP Stars rankings. Léon obtained his PhD degree from the European University Insitute in Florence and is assistant professor at the University of Amsterdam’s Institute for Information Law (IVIR). He is the author of *The Proportionality Test in European Patent Law* (Hart 2023), the only English-language monograph on the entitlement to permanent injunctions before European patent courts. Léon has published in top-tier journals such as GRUR International, IIC, and Common Market Law Review and is on the editorial board of *Intellectuele Eigendom en Reclamerecht* (IER), a leading Dutch IP publication. His work was cited by the advocate-general to the Dutch Supreme Court and was recognized with prizes in national and international competitions. ### Representative matters - **Fujifilm v. Kodak.** Represented Fujifilm in a cross-border patent dispute before the UPC, resulting in the first decisions where the UPC accepted jurisdiction over UK territory and issued infringement remedies for the UK. - **Birkenstock v. Scapino, Lidl.** Represented Birkenstock in national proceedings concerning copyright protection for its iconic sandals. - **Nikon v. ASML.** Represented ASML in various patent proceedings concerning its lithography machines, in which the court nullified Nikon’s patents - **Carl Zeiss v. VSY.** Represented Carl Zeiss in patent proceedings concerning lenses, in which the court issued a cross-border injunctions against VSY - **CRT v. Heineken.** Represented CRT in proceedings concerning use of the geographical indication ‘Tequila’, which resulted in Heineken committing to cease use thereof - **Spartan Race v. TERN.** Represented TERN in trade mark proceedings concerning use of ‘Spartan X’, which resulted in rejection of infringement claims in two instances ### Professional affiliations - Beneluxvereniging voor Merken- en Modellenrecht (BMM) - Vereniging Intellectueel Eigendomsrecht Procesrecht Advocaten (VIEPA) - Nederlandse Juristenvereniging (NJV) ### Publications - [*Court of Appeal of the Unified Patent Court clarifies conditions for public access to case files*](https://www.hoyngrokhgroup.com/news-insights/court-of-appeal-of-the-unified-patent-court-clarifies-conditions-for-public-access-to-case-files/) *–* [UPC ](https://www.hoyngrokhgroup.com/nl/upc/)Case Comment - [*Unified Patent Court’s Court of Appeal issues first substantial ruling*](https://www.hoyngrokhgroup.com/news-insights/unified-patent-courts-court-of-appeal-issues-first-substantial-ruling/) *–* [UPC ](https://www.hoyngrokhgroup.com/nl/upc/)Case Comment - *The Proportionality Test in European Patent Law* (Hart 2023) - Pairing Sturgeon with Champagne: Towards a Due Cause Exception in the Law of Geographical Indications (2023) 54 *IIC – International Review of Intellectual Property and Competition Law* - 'Of treats and treaties: the forgotten chapter of European Geographical Indications law' (OUP 2023) - Netherlands chapter (with Willem Hoyng), in: Husovec & Contreras (eds), *Injunctions in Patent Law: Trans-Atlantic Dialogues on Flexibility and Tailoring* (Cambridge University Press 2022) - 'Does the injunction gap violate implementers' fair trial rights under the Charter?' *GRUR* 2022, 857 - 'Does the injunction gap violate implementers' fair trial rights under the ECHR?' *GRUR International* 2021, 215 - 'Property aspects of intellectual property' *European Journal of Legal Studies* 2019, 153 ### Speaking engagements - 2025: ‘An enigma behind an illusion: applicable law before the UPC’ (GRUR annual conference, Berlin) - 2025: ‘Spotlight on the UPC: proportionality and long-arm jurisdiction’ (Warsaw SEP conference) - 2023: ‘The proportionality defence in European patent law’ (GRUR annual conference, Mannheim; acceptance of dissertation prize) - 2021: 'Fair trial rights in a bifurcated patent system' (GRUR annual conference, Bonn) ### What others say - Rising Star **Managing Intellectual Property – IP Stars 2025** ### Representative matters - **Fujifilm v. Kodak.** Represented Fujifilm in a cross-border patent dispute before the UPC, resulting in the first decisions where the UPC accepted jurisdiction over UK territory and issued infringement remedies for the UK. - **Birkenstock v. Scapino, Lidl.** Represented Birkenstock in national proceedings concerning copyright protection for its iconic sandals. - **Nikon v. ASML.** Represented ASML in various patent proceedings concerning its lithography machines, in which the court nullified Nikon’s patents - **Carl Zeiss v. VSY.** Represented Carl Zeiss in patent proceedings concerning lenses, in which the court issued a cross-border injunctions against VSY - **CRT v. Heineken.** Represented CRT in proceedings concerning use of the geographical indication ‘Tequila’, which resulted in Heineken committing to cease use thereof - **Spartan Race v. TERN.** Represented TERN in trade mark proceedings concerning use of ‘Spartan X’, which resulted in rejection of infringement claims in two instances ## Professional affiliations - Beneluxvereniging voor Merken- en Modellenrecht (BMM) - Vereniging Intellectueel Eigendomsrecht Procesrecht Advocaten (VIEPA) - Nederlandse Juristenvereniging (NJV) ## Publications - [*Court of Appeal of the Unified Patent Court clarifies conditions for public access to case files*](https://www.hoyngrokhgroup.com/news-insights/court-of-appeal-of-the-unified-patent-court-clarifies-conditions-for-public-access-to-case-files/) *–* [UPC ](https://www.hoyngrokhgroup.com/nl/upc/)Case Comment - [*Unified Patent Court’s Court of Appeal issues first substantial ruling*](https://www.hoyngrokhgroup.com/news-insights/unified-patent-courts-court-of-appeal-issues-first-substantial-ruling/) *–* [UPC ](https://www.hoyngrokhgroup.com/nl/upc/)Case Comment - *The Proportionality Test in European Patent Law* (Hart 2023) - Pairing Sturgeon with Champagne: Towards a Due Cause Exception in the Law of Geographical Indications (2023) 54 *IIC – International Review of Intellectual Property and Competition Law* - 'Of treats and treaties: the forgotten chapter of European Geographical Indications law' (OUP 2023) - Netherlands chapter (with Willem Hoyng), in: Husovec & Contreras (eds), *Injunctions in Patent Law: Trans-Atlantic Dialogues on Flexibility and Tailoring* (Cambridge University Press 2022) - 'Does the injunction gap violate implementers' fair trial rights under the Charter?' *GRUR* 2022, 857 - 'Does the injunction gap violate implementers' fair trial rights under the ECHR?' *GRUR International* 2021, 215 - 'Property aspects of intellectual property' *European Journal of Legal Studies* 2019, 153 ## Speaking engagements - 2025: ‘An enigma behind an illusion: applicable law before the UPC’ (GRUR annual conference, Berlin) - 2025: ‘Spotlight on the UPC: proportionality and long-arm jurisdiction’ (Warsaw SEP conference) - 2023: ‘The proportionality defence in European patent law’ (GRUR annual conference, Mannheim; acceptance of dissertation prize) - 2021: 'Fair trial rights in a bifurcated patent system' (GRUR annual conference, Bonn) ## What others say - Rising Star **Managing Intellectual Property – IP Stars 2025**