Maria Athanassiadou

Maria Athanassiadou is a senior partner at Dr Helen G. Papaconstantinou and Partners (HP&P), one of Greece's oldest and best-known intellectual property law firms. She has been recognised in the Corporate INTL Global Awards 2026 as Patent Litigation Lawyer of the Year in Greece, an accolade that reflects her seniority and experience within a firm devoted to the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights.

A century of intellectual property practice

HP&P is a Greek intellectual property firm with more than a century of history, combining international expertise with a deep knowledge of the Greek legal and business environment. The firm offers sophisticated legal and business solutions across the full range of IP, including patents, trade marks, supplementary protection certificates, utility models, industrial designs, copyright, litigation, anti-counterfeiting, e-commerce and domain names, competition law, advertising and consumer protection, contracts and licensing, plant breeders' rights and corporate services. As a senior figure in the firm's leadership, Maria Athanassiadou contributes to this broad and long-established practice, with a particular focus on patents and patent litigation.

Patent litigation in Greece

Patent litigation is among the most demanding areas of intellectual property practice. It requires an advocate to master both the technical subject matter of the patent and the legal principles governing infringement, validity and remedies. Disputes may concern whether a competing product falls within the scope of a patent's claims, whether the patent itself is valid, and what relief, such as injunctions or damages, should follow. In Greece, as in other jurisdictions, these cases often involve complex evidence, expert testimony and the interplay of national law with European patent rules, including the framework established by the European Patent Convention.

Effective patent litigators help clients protect the value of their research and development by enforcing rights against infringers, and equally help defendants resist unfounded claims. Because patented technologies frequently span multiple countries, litigation in Greece may form part of a wider, cross-border enforcement or defence strategy, making coordination and international perspective particularly important. A firm with HP&P's long history and full-service IP capability is well placed to handle contentious patent matters alongside the prosecution and management of patent portfolios.

The firm's areas of work

• Patents, utility models and supplementary protection certificates
• Patent litigation and enforcement
• Trade marks, industrial designs and copyright
• Anti-counterfeiting and customs enforcement
• Licensing, contracts and IP-related corporate services

Greece is a significant market within the European Union, and rights holders operating there, whether Greek businesses or international companies, need advisers who understand both the local courts and the wider European IP system. The protection of patents and other IP rights underpins innovation across sectors such as pharmaceuticals, technology and manufacturing, and enforcement is essential to preserving the incentives that intellectual property is designed to create.

Alongside contentious work, a full-service IP firm supports clients in the everyday management of their rights, from filing and prosecution to renewals, assignments and licensing. This continuity matters in patent matters, where the strength of a right in litigation often depends on decisions taken years earlier during drafting and prosecution. By handling both the creation and the defence of patents, HP&P can offer clients a joined-up service, and Maria Athanassiadou's seniority allows her to bring that combined perspective to the disputes she handles, aligning enforcement strategy with the underlying strength and scope of the rights at issue.

Corporate INTL Global Awards 2026

The Corporate INTL Global Awards recognise leading practitioners and firms across the world's legal and advisory markets, identified through the publication's research among clients and peers. Maria Athanassiadou's recognition as Patent Litigation Lawyer of the Year in Greece reflects both her personal standing and the enduring reputation of Dr Helen G. Papaconstantinou and Partners. For businesses seeking to protect and enforce patents and other intellectual property rights in Greece, her experience within one of the country's most established IP firms provides a reliable and knowledgeable point of contact.