Ms Sophie Lawrance

020 7400 8399 / +32 2 400 6233 sophie.lawrance@bristows.com View profile View profile

Work Department

Competition and EU, Competition litigation

Position

Sophie specialises in EU and UK competition law.

Sophie has a particular interest in working with businesses in the technology and pharmaceutical sectors, and in relation to the competition issues that arise in connection with standardised technology. Her practice spans all competition issues, but has a particular focus on litigation and investigations.

Sophie has significant experience of competition litigation in the UK courts. She has been involved both in pure competition law actions, acting for both claimants and defendants, and in several substantial pieces of patent litigation in which competition defences have been raised. Sophie has market-leading experience of cases involving FRAND licensing obligations, acting for both implementers and patentees. Alongside this, Sophie’s case load to date has included defending applications for interim injunctive relief, handling mixed stand-alone/follow-on damages claims, raising and defending competition issues arising from the seeking of remedies in IP cases and claims arising from IP licences.

Alongside her litigation case-load, Sophie handles competition authority investigations at both EU and national level, including in dawn raid situations. A recent focus has been on CMA investigations into the UK generics sector. Issues on which she has advised in this context include both substantive competition law and procedural issues, such as legal professional privilege, as well as dealing with competition director disqualification cases which are now a focus for the UK competition regulator.

Sophie is a member of the Competition Law Association (CLA) Committee. She regularly contributes feedback on competition policy issues, as well as speaking at conferences and writing on competition law issues in journals and blogs. Sophie is a regular contributor to Bristows’ blog on the competition/IP interface, the CLIP Board.

Career

Qualified 2004;
Partner 2016

Languages

French and German (both good)

Memberships

Competition Law Association; Law Society Competition Section

Education

MA French and German, University of Cambridge
MA, MPhil, PhD, University of Cambridge;
Postgraduate Diploma in Competition Law, King’s College, London, 2005;