How I Maximize My Membership: Ahu Güneyli

Ahu Güneyli (Erdem Kaya Partners, United Kingdom)

For Ahu Güneyli (Erdem Kaya Partners, United Kingdom), INTA is a “golden treasure of resources” in terms of both education and global connections. Among the resources, she especially highlights the Association’s Practice Guides, which, she says, is a great reference tool and helps build the best strategy for clients.

Ms. Güneyli, who is a partner and senior attorney at law, has been a member of INTA since 2014. In an interview with the INTA Bulletin, which she also called out as a valuable resource, Ms. Güneyli explains how she maximizes her membership in the Association.

How has being an INTA member helped you in your professional career?
There is always an international connection in the nature of IP rights. Turkish rights owners are in need of protection/enforcement of their rights abroad, which can be in any country or region around the world, while foreign rights owners need protection and enforcement in Turkey. Thanks to INTA, I have built a great international network consisting of colleagues from almost every country in the world. This network allows us to handle our domestic clients’ matters everywhere with reliable local partners and, at the same time, to improve our business in Turkey by handling foreign clients’ matters in Turkey.

Furthermore, INTA has played a great role in my professional self-development and it keeps us all updated on the recent developments in different jurisdictions, providing important insights into different legislation and practice around the globe. The committee work also has a forceful impact by pinpointing key issues and providing comparisons among other countries’ regulations and practices.

Apart from attending the Annual Meeting, how does your firm maximize its membership throughout the year?
INTA is a golden treasure of resources from both educational and membership perspectives. INTA Bulletin articles, the Practice Guides, seminars, webcasts, podcasts, interviews, etc., constitute a great online library for trademarks and other related rights, which benefit all practitioners in our company. In addition, through INTA’s Member Directory, we can find INTA members to contact in some countries where we rarely have the need for information and have no known colleague or company in that country. Moreover, the monthly committee meetings and work keep us focused on key trends throughout the year.

Can you share an example of a challenge IP professionals and brand owners are facing, and how INTA is helping address that challenge?
I guess the most important challenge we all encounter is finding a local IP professional in other jurisdictions. INTA plays a great role in finding one through its networking events, such as the Annual Meeting and Leadership Meeting, and its Member Directory, which is available online and easy to navigate. Further, as IP professionals, clients often ask us various questions related to IP practice in different jurisdictions. These questions, for example, could be about the length of the registration process in New Zealand, or whether opposition to a third-party application is possible in Russia, or whether a trademark has to be used to be registered in Canada, and so on. INTA’s Practice Guides are a great reference for us to quickly find answers to these questions and hence better assist our clients in building the best strategy for them.

In sum, why should brand owners and IP law firms join the Association?
I remember being shocked when I learned that the number of registrants at the Annual Meetings were around 10,000 to 11,000+ in pre-COVID times, all consisting of IP professionals, brand owners, and even the representatives of local/regional IP offices. It is safe to say that INTA is bringing a significant percentage of IP stakeholders together. Aside from the aforementioned networking and professional self-development opportunities and advantages, INTA also has a great impact on both global and local IP legislation, regulations, and practice. To be a part of this change to better shape IP, I strongly suggest that everyone in this business should join the Association.

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