Bertrand Liard
Biography
“Bertrand heads the IP/IT practice of White & Case in Paris […] he advises clients on use and development of their IP (licences in and out, R&D agreements), IP enforcement (infringement and fight against piracy), IT and the internet, particularly in sourcing and outsourcing transactions and internet litigation.” Chambers Europe (France) – TMT: Information Technology, 2022
Overview
Bertrand heads White & Case's Intellectual Property and Information Technology Practice in Paris. His client list is extensive, varied and truly international, spanning sectors such as social media, media and advertisement, transportation, luxury brands and industry. He also represents many clients from the financial sector, including financial technology (fintech) companies. His corporate clients are large US-based companies with EU operations and large France-based companies with EU or WW-wide operations, all with data, tech & IP intensive activities.
Bertrand applies his vast experience in assisting clients navigating complex cross-border disputes, compliance issues and transactions.
Clients call for Bertrand and his team to solve large data & tech disputes which necessitate to develop and bring to court innovative arguments and create case law. This cutting-edge work flourishes in the areas of social media and use case of complex technologies, where stakes are high and existing case law is scarce and limited.
Moreover, with regulators increasingly inclined to increase regulatory burden on data processing, security and on-line services (platforms, etc.), he brings clarity on data & tech compliance issues.
Bertrand also advises clients on their complex contractual arrangements, including strategic innovation sourcing, outsourcing, alliances and partnerships, with an aim of creating value for his clients through these data & tech transactions.
Bertrand is a frequent speaker, author and commentator on privacy, technology and fintech issues. He has a detailed knowledge of the EU's General Data Protection Regulation, the DSA, DMA and other EU regulations (re. artificial intelligence, platforms, connected objects, data, etc.). He is an active member of the Strategic Orientation Committee of CashWay, a fintech company. He is also a member of the board of the newly created association Phil.IA, dedicated to the acceptance of artificial intelligence in the civil society.
Bertrand joined White & Case in 2007 from another major international law firm. Chambers Europe has ranked him for more than 10 years for TMT: Information Technology.
Experience
Representative transactions include:
- Advising Meta (formerly Facebook) in all pre-litigation and litigation matters involving France, including litigation with users before civil and commercial courts, judicial and extra-judicial mediation;
- Advising Meta and other social networks on the impact of recent and draft regulations on their operations: platforms regulations, fake news, artificial intelligence, DSA, DMA, etc.;
- Advising leading financial services institutions such as Crédit Agricole, Natixis, Société Générale, Agence Française de Développement (AFD) on a vast array of matters, spanning from IT, SaaS and commercial contracts drafting and negotiating to advising in relation to complex data protection and regulatory matters (outsourcing rules, US CLOUD Act, etc.), especially in the context of international transfers and investigations;
- Advising media and advertising companies such as Vivendi and Publicis as well as industrial groups such as Saint-Gobain and Adisséo on the IP/IT aspects of large transactions and partnerships involving complex IP rights, data & tech issues;
- Advising SNCF group on setting-up and commercializing a reservation and distribution system for high-speed passenger trains, including negotiation of agreements with software providers and integrators, and agreements with customers;
- Advising long-standing clients such as Christian Dior, bioMérieux, and X-Fab (semiconductor manufacturer) in relation to the drafting and negotiation of IT, SaaS, tech and commercial contracts, as well as in relation to privacy matters.
Bertrand is a frequent speaker, author and commentator on privacy, technology and fintech issues. He participated in the creation of a series of workshops (called "Data & Tech Lab") to highlight data & tech updates:
June 2022: The end of third-party cookies - issues and reflections with Sabrina Bouguessa, Data Privacy Lead (Southern Europe), Google
May 2022: NFTs: new legal issues with Gabrielle Dorais, Head of Legal, Sorare
November 2021: New data privacy and security legislation in China: presentation and implications
June 2021: Update on recent Data and Tech trends
The law of the Metaverses, CentraleSupélec Alumni, March 2023
Technology M&A (France chapter), Getting the Deal Through, 2019 & 2020, (co-author)
Technology Disputes (France chapter), Getting the Deal Through, 2020, (co-author)
TMT 2021 (France chapter), Chambers Practice Guide, 2021, (co-author)
Recognized as "Leading lawyer" by Chambers Europe 2023 for TMT: Information Technology in France
"Bertrand Liard of White & Case acts for high-profile clients on a wide array of IT mandates, including litigation and transactional mandates. He is also well versed in data protection regulations."
Recommended by Who's Who Legal 2024 in the following categories: Data – Data Security, Data – Information Technology and France - Data
Recommended by IAM Patent 1000 2023: The World's Leading Patent Practitioners
"Bertrand Liard combines his patent expertise with his deep knowledge of IT and data privacy issues. An accomplished litigator, he is an invaluable counsellor when it comes to unravelling the complexities of doing business over the internet."
