The competition–cooperation of IP lawyers and IP consultants

The objective of this chapter is to analyze the role played by the institutional entrepreneurs of IPRs politics, in particular by what we call the “legal intermediaries,” who, through a series of mediations, articulate the legal statements and practices of actors seeking legitimacy in their field of activity. For example, patent attorneys try to establish patent models that comply with the law in force, while integrating the firms’ managerial objectives of appropriating innovation. The chapter begins by tracing the long history of relations between patent intermediaries and evoking the first globalization of intellectual property. We then analyze the second globalization, in particular the emergence of a European patent system that pits patent intermediaries against each other at both the national and international level. The future establishment of the Unified Patent Court will only increase this international competition and reinforce the segmentation of IP law firms. Finally, the chapter offers a reflection on the development of international legal norms accompanying a new form of economic competition based on the value of IPRs and the legal intermediaries that construct this value.