Andrej Michalík, PhD

Andrej holds a Master of Science degree in Chemistry and Biochemistry from Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovak Republic, as well as a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Antwerp, Belgium, under the supervision of Prof. Christine Van Broeckhoven (Flemish Interuniversity Institute for Biotechnology, VIB).

He joined De Clercq & Partners in 2004 and qualified as a European Patent Attorney in 2008. In 2017, Andrej became partner to the firm. Two years later in 2019, he succesfully obtained the Diploma on Patent Litigation in Europe, a course coordinated by CEIPI at the University of Strasbourg. Andrej has been registered as a representative before the Unified Patent Court (UPC).

IAM Patent 1000 recommends Andrej for his skills as a patent attorney.

Areas of practice

• Drafting, filing and prosecution of European and PCT patent applications
• Drafting and prosecution of national patent applications
• Oppositions and appeal proceedings before the EPO
• Oral proceedings before the EPO in examination and opposition and before the Boards of Appeal
• Acting as an expert in litigation before Belgian civil courts or parties in intellectual property matters
• Opinions regarding patentability, freedom-to-operate, infringement and validity of intellectual property rights
• IP due diligence
• Portfolio management, advice and strategy
• General and strategic advice in IP matters
• Acting as a European Patent Litigator before the Unified Patent Court (UPC)

Andrej is a full member of the European Patent Practice Committee (EPPC) of the Institute of Professional Representatives before the European Patent Office (epi). Furthermore, he is a member of LES and AIPPI.

Andrej has often lectured at conferences on several IP related topics and he is also a lecturer at the CEIPI courses (ie.net in Antwerp) and the Advanced Master in Biotech and MedTech Ventures of Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management, and the BioBusiness Accelerator Programme of HELIS Academy for patent attorney trainees.

Languages

He is a native speaker of Slovak, is very fluent in English, fluent in Dutch and Czech, and has a working knowledge of German.

Competences

Biotechnology, biochemistry, molecular and cellular biology, biopharmaceuticals and chemistry including organic chemistry and pharmaceuticals. He has particular knowledge and expertise in the area of recombinant microorganisms, genetically modified plants and animals, stem cells, regenerative cell therapy, in vitro cell-based assays, proteomics, peptides, glycoproteins, biomarkers, genome editing, diagnostics including nucleic acid- and protein-based diagnostic and screening assays, immune cell therapy, vaccines, organic chemistry and pharmaceuticals, food processing and personal care products.

What they say about Andrej

"A highly innovative attorney, having amassed an impressive array of experience dealing with cutting-edge biotechnology cases in the areas of regenerative therapy, genome editing, vaccines, green energy and molecular biology." - IAM Patent 1000 (2024)