Ricardo Vieira de Mello is a senior partner at the firm and heads the São Paulo office.

Ricardo served as vice-president of ABPI - Brazilian Association of Intellectual Property in the bienniums 2000/2001 and 2002/2003, and is a Lifetime Honorary Member of its Board of Directors. He was also President of ABAPI - Brazilian Association of Industrial Property Agents in the biennium 2000/2001, and currently, is an Honorary Counselor and Director of Institutional Relations of the association. He was vice-president of ASPI (São Paulo Association of Intellectual Property), and currently is a member of its Fiscal and Advisory Board. Also, he was President of ALAE (Alliance of Business Advocacy) in the biennium 2021 and 2022.

Ricardo is a member of the Industrial Property and Piracy Commission of OAB/RJ (Brazilian Bar Association, Rio de Janeiro section) and the Industrial Property Commission of OAB-SP (Brazilian Bar Association, São Paulo section, Jabaquara/Saúde sub-section).

He was Coordinator, from August 1996 to December 2007, of the Permanent Commission for Studies on Trademarks of ABPI and was elected Director of Institutional Relations of ASPI – São Paulo Association of Industrial Property, for the bienniums 2013/2015 and 2017/2019.

Academic Background

Graduated in Law from Faculdade Cândido Mendes in 1976.

Professional Experience

• Member of the Industrial Property and Piracy Commission of OAB/RJ (Brazilian Bar Association, Rio de Janeiro section).
• Member of the Intellectual Property Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Rio de Janeiro.
• Coordinator of the Permanent Commission for Studies on Trademarks of ABPI (Brazilian Association of Intellectual Property) – 1996-2007.
• President of the Brazilian Association of Industrial Property Agents (ABAPI) – 2000/2001.
• Vice-President of the Brazilian Association of Intellectual Property (ABPI) – 2000/2001 and 2002/2003.
• Honorary Counselor of the Brazilian Association of Industrial Property Agents (ABAPI).
• Lifetime Honorary Member of the Brazilian Association of Intellectual Property (ABPI).
• President of ALAE - Alliance of Business Advocacy – March 2020 to March 2021.
• Secretary of the Intellectual Property Committee of OAB - Jabaquara/Saúde Subsection.

Publications

• “7 motivos para que empreendedores protejam suas marcas e patentes”, Capital Econômico, september 2023.
• "Menos da metade das startups cadastradas no Brasil possuem direitos de marcas no INPI", Law Innovation, june 2021.
• "OMPI (Organização Mundial da Propriedade Intelectual) alerta para a necessidade de proteção de ativos de PMEs", Newsletter ALAE - Aliança de Advocacia Empresarial, April 2021.
• "World Intellectual Property Organization warns of the need to protect IP assets of SMEs", Lexology, April 2021.

Professional Acknowledgements

Leaders League, Chambers Global; Brazil´s Best Counsel, Análise Advocacia.