Honorary Advisors

Chairman

Indonesian Intellectual Property Attorneys Association

Ms Dwi Anita Daruherdani

President

Turkish Patent and Trademark Office

Prof. Dr. Muhammed Zeki Durak is the President of the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (TÜRKPATENT), a role he has held since October 2023.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:257}"> Born in Eskişehir in 1980, Prof. Durak completed his undergraduate studies in Food Engineering at Akdeniz University. He conducted research supported by Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK) during his studies, which led to an invitation as a visiting researcher at Cornell University in the United States. He later earned both his master’s and PhD degrees from Cornell  University with a full scholarship.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:257}"> Following his doctoral studies, he worked as a consultant in the U.S.A. and returned to Türkiye in 2012, where he co-founded the Department of Food Engineering at Yıldız Technical University. Throughout his academic career, he received several national and international awards and was recognized as the university’s top academician in terms of project volume and number that he conducted.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:257}"> His expertise spans food science, biotechnology, and nanotechnology, and he holds multiple patents in these fields. From 2020 to 2023, he served as the Secretary General of the Bursa Eskişehir Bilecik Development Agency.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:257}"> Prof. Durak is married and has two children.

Prof. Dr. M. Zeki Durak

The International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI)

Lorenza Ferrari Hofer is a Partner in our Intellectual Property Group and co-heads our Life Sciences Group. She specializes in Dispute Resolution, intellectual property, unfair competition, data law and contract law. She has profound knowledge in respect of the development, manufacture, licensing and distribution of technology products, among others therapeutic, food products and automotive technologies. Also, she has broad experience in media, advertising, marketing and sponsoring matters. Her life sciences practice also includes regulatory matters and product liability defense. Lorenza Ferrari Hofer advises her clients on intellectual property related deals and transactions and represents them in legal proceedings in front of Swiss courts, arbitral tribunals and administrative authorities.

Dr Lorenza Ferrari Hofer

President 

Ma Fu, former Secretary of Ningxia League District Committee, Mayor of Ningxia Guyuan City, Secretary of the Party Group and director of Ningxia Department of Commerce, Director of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce Individual Department, Director of Foreign Investment Bureau, Director of Enterprise Supervision Bureau; He is currently President of China Trademark Association, Deputy Director of Beijing Intellectual Property Strategy Advisory Committee, and member of Guangdong Intellectual Property Expert Advisory Committee.

Mr Ma Fu 

Senior Counsel Chairman of the Court Hong Kong University of Science and Technology; Former Non-official Member of the Executive Council The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

Andrew Liao is a Senior Counsel.  He has carried on an active legal practice as a barrister in Hong Kong since 1975, specializing in intellectual property in the fields of technology and innovation, brands and trade marks, cultural and creative industries including patents for inventions, designs, copyright, trade marks, trade names, passing off, trade secrets, confidential information, trade libel/injurious falsehood, copyright collective licensing, allied rights, pre-emptive remedies, and carrying on a general practice in other civil and commercial matters.  He was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1989, and was appointed Deputy High Court Judge in 1990, and Recorder of the High Court in 2000-2002.    Apart from his professional legal practice, Andrew has continuously and actively participated in public service including those concerning intellectual property in Hong Kong.  As a member of the Law Reform Commission and its Copyright Sub-Committee, he was actively and closely involved in the reform of the copyright law, leading to the enactment of Hong Kong’s first substantive Copyright Ordinance in 1997.  He was the first Chairman of the Copyright Tribunal when it was established in 1997, and was Convenor of the Hong Kong Bar’s Task Force on Intellectual Property.  In 2001, Andrew was awarded the Silver Bauhinia Star (SBS) by the HKSAR for his contribution to the reform of intellectual property laws in Hong Kong.  He was Vice-Chairman of the Working Group on Intellectual Property Trading, Chairman of the Steering Committee on Review of Intellectual Property Issues in the Innovation and Technology Sector, Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Review of the Patent System, and Member of the Advisory Committee on Promotion of Arbitration.   Andrew has been actively promoting intellectual property, intellectual property trading, intellectual property arbitration and mediation, cultural and creative industries, innovation and technology in Hong Kong and the Mainland of China, and was the founder and organizer of the BIP Forum (Business of Intellectual Property Forum) as part of BODW (Business of Design Week) in Hong Kong from 2007 to 2011.  He was formerly Adjunct Professor of the School of Law at the City University of Hong Kong. Andrew was formally a Non-Official Member of the Executive Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Over the years, while actively practicing at the Bar, Mr. Liao has also actively participated in public service, having been appointed to a large number of public offices and bodies performing different public functions. For his distinguished exemplary contributions to the public service, he was awarded the Gold Bauhinia Star (GBS) in 2008.  In 2022, he was award the Grand Bauhinia Medal (GBM) for his exemplary contributions to the public service, including the higher education sector, intellectual property, cultural and creative industries, as well as innovation technology development in Hong Kong.  Andrew is currently carrying on his professional legal practice as Senior Counsel in dispute resolutions covering litigation and arbitration. He had served as Chairman of the Council, and is now serving as Chairman of the Court of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.  In 2023, he was conferred the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws honoris causa by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

Dr. the Hon Andrew Liao, GBM, GBS, SC, JP

International Federation of Inventors' Association

President of IFIA | Innovation Strategist | Official Member of Forbes Business Council  Professional Experience President, International Federation of Inventors’ Associations (IFIA)  2014 – Present Official Member, Forbes Business Council  2023 – Present Committee Member, WIPO Inventor Assistance Program (IAP)  2019 CEO, Silicon Valley International Invention Festival (SVIIF)  2018 – Present Memberships &amp; Distinctions <ul><li> Member, ResearchGate</li><li> Member, MIT Solve Community</li><li> Member, European Alliance for Innovation (EAI)</li><li> Member, Global Innovation Exchange (GIE)</li><li> Member, Art Credit Found</li><li> Member, House of Literature</li></ul>Innovation &amp; Intellectual Property <ul><li> Holder of 9 national and international patents</li><li> Certificate: Introduction to the Patent Cooperation Treaty, WIPO Academy</li><li> Partner, Croatia International Invention and Economy Forum (2014)</li></ul>Publications Author and editor of over 10 books and scholarly articles in the fields of invention, innovation policy, and intellectual property.

Mr Alireza Rastegar

Etienne Sanz de Acedo joined INTA on July 1, 2013. As CEO, Mr. Sanz de Acedo works with the Board of Directors and Officers to recommend, formulate, and implement policies and programs for the Association; is responsible for the administrative operation of the Association’s offices and the supervision of all staff; and is responsible for the development and administration of the annual budget. Before joining INTA, Mr. Sanz de Acedo was Head of Communications and Member of the President’s Cabinet at the European Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), the EU’s intellectual property agency, where he was responsible for strategic communications and the agency’s corporate image and identity. Before joining the EUIPO, he practiced as an attorney in Spain and taught law at the University of Alicante, Spain. Mr. Sanz de Acedo holds a law degree from the University of Alicante, an LLM in European Community Law from the Université Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium, and an executive MBA from Instituto de Empresa Business School in Madrid. A Spanish and French national, he speaks English, French, Italian, and Spanish.

Mr Etienne Sanz de Acedo

Director General & CEO 

Danish Patent and Trademark Office

Sune Stampe Sørensen is the Director General and CEO of the Danish Patent and Trademark Office under the Danish Ministry of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs. He is also board member of the Nordic Patent Institute, board member of the Danish Academy of Technical Sciences, board member of the Danish-Chinese Business Forum, member of the Management Board at the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), and member of the board of the Administrative Council in the European Patent Office (EPO). Previously, he has held various executive positions in the Ministry of Environment and Food of Denmark, and at the Danish Ministry of Finance. Prior to this, he was Private Secretary to the Danish Prime Minister. Sune holds an M.A. in Political Science from University of Copenhagen and Certificat d’Etudes Politiques from Sciences Po in France.

Mr Sune Stampe Sørensen 

Director General

Daren Tang, a national of Singapore, began his six-year mandate as Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on October 1, 2020. Prior to his appointment, Mr. Tang served as a senior official in the Singapore Government. His last appointment before joining WIPO was Chief Executive of the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) where he transformed IPOS from a traditional IP registry into an innovation agency, enhancing Singapore's IP ecosystem and strengthening international collaborations. Early in his career, Mr. Tang served as an international lawyer for the Singapore Government, specializing in international economic law and playing a pivotal role in resolving international disputes and negotiating key international agreements. Mr. Tang is a graduate of the National University of Singapore (Bachelor of Law, Honors) and the Georgetown University Law Center (Master of Laws, Distinction). He also attended the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. He is fluent in English and Chinese. Mr. Tang is an avid jazz pianist and has authored a book on the history and culture of tea.