How to Join FICPI

Membership of FICPI is open to all IP attorneys in private practice in the UK who meet the conditions for membership and is generally only available through FICPI-UK. Membership of FICPI-UK leads automatically to membership of FICPI. If desired, members will be listed in the FICPI Member Directory. If you practise outside the UK, click here to find out how to join FICPI in your country or region.

The current membership fee is £280 per year, which includes the subscription to FICPI.

Definitions

For the purposes of FICPI membership, an “IP attorney” is generally regarded as a practitioner specialised in Intellectual Property matters, having the right to represent an applicant before the UK Intellectual Property Office.

“Intellectual Property” includes the matters referred to in Article 4 of the Paris Convention, but excludes “pure” copyright.

Normally, FICPI-UK requires an applicant to be a registered patent attorney or a registered trade mark attorney.

“Private practice” is regarded as rendering of services in an independent manner, either individually or through a firm with which the practitioner is associated, exclusively to the general public, for advising, assisting, or representing clients with a view to obtaining, maintaining, exploiting or defending IP rights. In determining the independence of the practitioner in a firm, the professional structure of the firm shall be considered before its financial control. For greater certainty, a private practice shall be a firm that is free to accept or not a professional retainer, subject to the normal ethical standards of the profession.

An applicant must also be of good repute.

For information about the benefits of membership please visit the About page.

Application Process

  • To begin the application process, please complete the online Application Form below.
  • After clicking “submit”, your completed Application Form will be forwarded to the Secretary.
  • FICPI-UK Council will consider your application and might make some enquires about your application in case anything is unclear and if we need more information.
  • The Secretary will contact you as soon as possible to let you know the outcome of your application.
  • If you are successful, the Secretary will send your personal details to FICPI (your consent will be needed for this) who will assign you a membership number. The Secretary will notify you of your membership number and invite you to pay your first subscription online (a link will be provided). (You will need your application number for this.) Upon receipt of payment, your membership will be confirmed.
  • Please note that FICPI-UK is not obliged to inform an unsuccessful applicant why their application was rejected.

If you have any questions about the Application Form or the application process in general, or if you need any assistance, please contact the Secretary.

Application Form

    Qualifications

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    In applying for membership of FICPI-UK, I certify that I am an Intellectual Property Attorney in private practice, either as a sole practitioner, a partner or as an employee, and that I am not employed by one or more companies or organisations to act exclusively for it or them. (Required)

    I consent to FICPI-UK transferring my personal information to FICPI for the purposes of administering my membership of FICPI-UK. (Required)

    Payment details

    Membership is subject to the payment of an annual subscription, which is currently £280. The membership year begins on 1 July, and subscription invoices are normally issued by the Treasurer at the end of July. If a new member joins between 1 January and 31 March, the first year's subscription is discounted by 50%. If a new member joins between 1 April and 30 June, the first subscription is discounted to zero.

    Personal data

    FICPI-UK processes personal information on its members for the purpose of maintaining the register of members, administering bookings and invoicing members in respect of annual subscriptions and other payments for conferences and seminars, dinner meetings and other events and distributing the FICPI-UK Newsletter and other communications. FICPI-UK also supplies such information to FICPI for inclusion in the Membership Directory that is available online on www.ficpi.org and for the distribution of FICPI’s Newsletter and other communications and invitations to meetings. Neither FICPI nor FICPI-UK makes such data available to any third parties other than by virtue of any of the above-mentioned uses. However, use of personal information of members of FICPI-UK by FICPI-UK or FICPI may entail such information being transferred to countries outside the UK.

    I would like my name to appear in FICPI’s membership list or online at FICPI’s website. (Optional)