Paola Gelato

Paola specialises in intellectual property, and represents a large group of Italian and foreign clients. She represents many multinational companies especially in relation to chemical, cosmetics and pharmaceutical trademarks and patents, as well as in copyright, unfair competition, internet law and advertising matters.

Paola has practiced in all areas of intellectual property and related areas, both in litigation and non-contentious matters. She has matured into an experienced practitioner well versed in the enforcement of famous trademarks and designs in the perfumery, pharmaceutical, fashion and luxury goods sectors, as well as in patents, particularly securing protection for chemical, bio-technological and pharmaceutical patents before the relevant jurisdictions and authorities.

 In addition, Paola has developed significant experience in the agri-food sector and food supplements, as well as in the wine sector and protected designations of origin.

 She also advises clients in criminal anticounterfeiting law and customs procedures, including labelling and CE marking.

She also has an extensive practice in the negotiation, drafting and revision of all types of commercial contracts, licensing and distribution, franchising, agreements, especially selective distribution agreements in the field of cosmetics and perfumery products.

Paola has also acquired substantial experience in advertising law, both at the private and public levels. This entails enforcing clients’ rights before the Private Advertising self-regulatory Authority (the Giurì), and the Central Public Authority (the Autorità Garante), which is the body responsible for misleading and comparative advertising. Her focus in this area are cases in the field of cosmetics, food-supplements and pharmaceutical goods and medical devices, as she has a sound knowledge of the national and European laws and regulations in these areas.

She graduated in law with honours from the University of Turin in 1986. She then gained a Post-graduate Masters of Comparative Law at Strasbourg International University and was admitted to the (Turin) Bar in 1990.

Paola is an assistant lecturer in civil law and teaches European law at Turin University, and is also a tutor for the WIPO post-graduate specialisation course on intellectual property, under the joint direction of WIPO and Turin University.

She is a published author on a wide range of topics in intellectual property and advertising, primarily for the Italian Law Review “Giurisprudenza Italiana” and “Contratto e Impresa Europa”, for which she is also a member of the Editorial Board, as she also is for certain French and English law reviews.

 Paola is member of the Board of Experts in Intellectual Property for Unifab, the French Industry Association.

Paola is a member of APRAM (French association composed by specialists of IP located in Paris), ECTA, LES, AIPPI, PTMG and she actively participates in said associations with written contributions and oral interventions. In particular, Paola within Aippi International, is a member of the Standing Committee of Commercialisation of IP .

She is a frequent speaker at many international conferences, primarly in France and within the framework of INTA, where she presents different reports on various IP topics such as, for example, on payment criteria for indemnity for damages deriving from the infringement of industrial and intellectual property rights, food counterfeiting, design protection and copyright, interactive design, shape trademarks, colour trademarks and look-alikes, geographical indications and indications of origin, commercial/distribution agreements, advertising of cosmetic products and dietary supplements and the protection of textile creations.

Publications:

- "Sulla stessa stella cometa … tante pronunce diverse", in Giur. It. 1990, 2, 431;
- "Valore probatorio delle indagini di mercato, agli effetti dell’accertamento della decadenza per non uso di un marchio", in Giur. It. 1991;
- Contributions to the Law Encyclopedia, edited by De Agostini, on the following topics: "Unfair Competition, Contract of Edition, Copyright, Trademarks", 1992;
- "Il prezzo nella vendita", in I Grandi Orientamenti della giurisprudenza civile e commerciale, F. Galgano, Padova, 1994;
- "La vendita con spedizione", in I Grandi Orientamenti della giurisprudenza civile e commerciale, F. Galgano, Padova, 1994;
- "La vendita con riserva di gradimento", in I Grandi Orientamenti della giurisprudenza civile e commerciale, F. Galgano, Padova, 1994;
- "Il modo e L’onere", in Digesto Italiano, IV, Torino, 1995;
- "Comment on Copyright", in Contratto e Impresa Europa, II, Padova, 1996;
- "The Community Trademark", in Contratto e Impresa Europa, 1997;
- "Parallel Importations and Famous trademarks in the most recent European case-law", on Contratto e Impresa Europa, I, 1998;
- "The Registrability of fragrances and sound trademarks", on Contratto e Impresa Europa, II, 1998;
- "Limits to the free use of third parties’ works", on Giur. It, 1998, 1192;
- "Know-how agreements and European Competition Law", on Diritto Unione Europea, 1998, 161;
- "Brief notes on the Community Patent", on Contratto e Impresa Europa, II, 2000;
- "The Community Design", on Contratto e Impresa Europa, 2002, II, 1273;
- "Advertising in Italy", on European Trademark Report, 2007;
- "The EC Enforcement Directive 2004/48: the right of information and damages award" on Propriété Industrielle, April 2009;
- "The Infringement shall not profitable: the damages-award and an attempt to approach the so-called “punitive damages”, in Propriété Industrielle, n. 37, October 2010.
- "Le design est-il le nouveau moteur de l’innovation véritable?" published on the Gazette du Palais n. 161-162 of 10-11 June 2011.
- "La marque part-elle dans le décor?" published on Propriété Industrielle, n. 2, February 2012.
- "La fonction publicitaire et suggestive de la marque; l’évolution de la notion du signe distinctif dans la doctrine et la jurisprudence italiennes, au vu des principes dégagés par la CJUE" published on the French review Lamy Droit de l’Immatériel, n. 85, August-September 2012.
- “Geographical indications and designations of origin: extending coverage to the wine sector. Guidelines governing the protection of geographical indications (GIs) and protected designations of origin (PDOs). The interplay between GI, PDO and trademark protection”, the article will be published on World Trademark Review, 2012.
- “Dibattito sul brevetto unitario: il brevetto unitario per l’Europa, o brevetto europeo (con effetto) unitario? Nodi giuridici e linguistici nella prospettiva italiana" published on Contratto Impresa Europa 2012.
- “Tools for the trade”, published on ITMA review, June 2017, n. 434.
- “Les nouveaux défis d’internet”, published on Propriété Industrielle, July-August 2018, n. 7-8.
- “Le nouveau paquet marques: première lecture de la transposition en Italie”, published on Propriété Industrielle, January 2020, n. 1.
- “Selective distribution in Italy: a new effective weapon for an enhanced protection of reputed brands against online platforms and risk of trademark’s dilution”, published on CITMA review, February 2020.
- “New Code, new options”, published on ITMA review on June 2020.
- “IP Licensing Contracts in Italy – Royalty Rate Determination and Dispute Resolution Clauses” published on GRUR International, 2021, 1–12.
- “The matter of Geographical Indications and Designations of Origin in the Wine Field: Italian and European Perspective”, published on Wine Law, 2021.
- Book Review, “Luxury Wine, a status between marketing and intellectual property”, published on Jus Vini, Journal of Wine & Spirits Law, n. 2 , 2021.
- “The Essentials of Pharmaceutical Trademarks in Italy”, published on Lexology GTDT, 2022;
- « Lettre d’Italie - La Propriété intellectuelle à l'épreuve des nouvelles technologies et du digital: quelles conséquences pour les titulaires de marques (en particulier notoires) ? » , to be publisehd on Propriétés intellectuelles.