Liesbet Paemen, PhD

Liesbet Paemen holds a PhD in Animal Biology from the University of Leuven, Belgium. She has several years of postdoctoral experience at the Department of Neuroimmunology at the State University of New York and at the Department of Molecular Immunology of the REGA Institute (University of Leuven, Belgium).

Prior to joining De Clercq & Partners in 2008, Liesbet worked as a patent counsel in the Intellectual Property Department of Bayer Cropscience NV and headed the biotech IP department in the firm Bird Goën & Co.

In 2010 Liesbet became a partner to the firm and she is heading the Leuven Branch of De Clercq & Partners. She is a qualified European Patent Attorney. In 2023, Liesbet successfully obtained the Certificate on Patent Litigation in Europe from the Politecnico di Milano. She has been registered as a representative before the Unified Patent Court (UPC).

Liesbet was repeatedly praised in the IAM Patent 1000 and was named Global Leader for the last six years for her skills both as a Patent Attorney and as teacher.

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
• Opinions regarding patentability, freedom-to-operate, infringement and validity of intellectual property rights
• Acting as an independent expert for the Belgian courts in descriptive seizure proceedings
• Acting as an expert in litigation before Belgian civil courts in intellectual property matters
• IP due diligence
• Portfolio management, advice and strategy
• General strategic and legal advice in IP matters
• Acting as an European Patent Litigator before the Unified Patent Court (UPC)

Liesbet often lectures on several IP related topics at conferences and is a lecturer at the University of Leuven, the University of Antwerp and the CEIPI course (ie.net in Antwerp). She is a member of LES and AIPPI.

Languages

She is a native Dutch speaker and English speaker, is fluent in French, and has knowledge of German and Spanish.

Competences

Liesbet has experience in handling intellectual property issues in different fields including medical devices, biomedical, agricultural and industrial biotechnology, plant molecular biology, modified plants and animals, biologics, cellular therapy, genome editing, screening systems and diagnostic methods, and renewable energy.

What they say about Liesbet

"Very dedicated and professional with highly competent, efficient, excellent service and advice, and unique ability to unravel the most complex inventions." - IAM Patent 1000 (2024)

 “Liesbet Paemen is a key asset to the firm’s IP offering, enriching it with unparalleled in-house counsel experience for global leaders in industry and serving as an IP expert entrusted by the Belgian courts.”  - IAM Patent 1000 (2025)