The powerhouse team at intellectual property boutique firm Guy José Bendaña-Guerrero & Asociados remains a market leader, assisting such global names as Microsoft, Pfizer, Chanel and Toyota with the management and protection of the copyright, trade mark, patent and industrial design portfolios of international brands. The group’s active client base spans sectors ranging from pharmaceuticals, fashion, food and beverages, and tech to retail, motor vehicles, consumer goods and entertainment. The practice’s comprehensive service extends to complex registrations, IP monetisation strategies, advertising matters, opposition actions and high-stakes infringement litigation. The practice is led by veteran litigator and practice area authority Guy Bendaña-Guerrero, the former President of the Nicaraguan Association of Intellectual Property (ANIPI); IP enforcement and anti-counterfeiting specialist Julián Bendaña-Aragón; Blanca de Bendaña; and experienced senior associates Ana Jeanssy Fornos and Gabriela Fornos.

Alvarado y Asociados remains a key firm in the practice space, drawing on the bench strength and expertise of its team to manage and protect the intellectual property portfolios of global brands, including those of Major League Baseball, Coors, the NBA and the Gap. The firm’s active client base spans such sectors as sports, food and beverages, building materials, retail, manufacturing and consumer products. The group’s full service covers matters ranging from copyright, trade mark and patent registrations and administrative procedures to oppositions and high-stakes infringement actions. The team is led by the respected Gloria María de Alvarado and seasoned IP strategist Zayda Cubas. Key support is provided by senior associate Francisco José Alvarado, who specialises in the protection, registration and defence of distinctive signs, and associate Aura Tórrez, who manages administrative and judicial IP processes, and utilises a background as the Secretary of the Intellectual Property Registry.

Arias leverages its regional footprint and the experience of its team to advise global, household-name brands across such sectors as pharmaceuticals, healthcare, food and beverages, motor vehicles and consumer goods on the safeguarding and management of their international intellectual property portfolios. Displaying particular strength in IP rights protection and enforcement, the firm’s full offering covers the registration of trade marks, patents and copyrights, anti-counterfeiting measures, technology transfers and IP-related due diligence, including the preparation and revision of documents in physical and virtual data rooms. The practice is headed by Gustavo-Adolfo Vargas, who brings expertise to the IP aspects of complex, cross-border transactions. Associate Carlos Úbeda specialises in the negotiation of co-existence agreements and pre-judicial meditations in enforcement actions.

Channeling the bench strength of its offices in Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Guatemala, the team at BLP advises national and multinational corporations, including Apple and Unilever, across such sectors as tech, consumer goods, aviation, tobacco, art and pharmaceuticals on the management and defence of their global IP portfolios. The group’s comprehensive skill set extends to trade mark searches, registrations and renewals, anti-counterfeiting matters, patent prosecution, and administrative and judicial litigation. Orlando Cardoza heads the team, bringing over two decades of experience to handling complex registration and protection strategies.

One-stop-shop boutique firm Estudio Caldera, S.A. draws on the combined strength of separate departments dedicated to registrations, litigation and the digital tracking of trade marks to safeguard and manage the intellectual property portfolios of household-name global brands across such sectors as tech, food, agriculture, hospitality, pharmaceuticals, consumer goods, motor vehicles and entertainment. The group’s full service covers matters ranging from domain names, commercial names, sanitary registrations and satellite signals to complex patent and copyright infringement litigation, trade mark oppositions and IP-related due diligence processes. The practice is headed by the experienced Martha Lorena Zelaya, Ruth Morales and Isabel Artola. Former trade mark team leader Karla Mejia retired from the firm in February 2024.

Powered by a network of regional and international offices, Dentons advises major multinationals (including such household names as Walmart) on a wide range of matters across the practice area. With an active client base spanning the retail, food and beverages, tech, cosmetics, telecoms and pharmaceuticals sectors, the practice’s full offering covers the registration, protection and enforcement of trade marks, patents, designs, copyrights and trade secrets, in addition to IP litigation and administrative procedures, the IP aspects of cross-border transactions, and regulatory and licensing issues. The practice is headed by director Mayra Navarrete, who brings expertise to brand protection, anti-counterfeiting actions, IP prosecutions and data privacy matters. Key support is provided by associate Ana Ruth Rodriguez, who draws on a background in the public sector at the Intellectual Property Registry Office of Nicaragua.

García & Bodán draws on the bench strength of eight locations through Latin America to manage the intellectual property portfolios and health registrations of major global brands such as Novo Nordisk and Univision, across sectors ranging from entertainment, software,  energy and financial services to food and beverages, chemicals, retail, pharmaceuticals and telecoms. The practice’s full service covers administrative and judicial proceedings, in addition to the surveillance of trade marks, patents, industrial designs and utility models, licensing and franchising matters, and due diligence procedures. The team is led by senior associate Lía Incer Flores, who utilises a background as  a former director of copyright and related rights at the General Directorate of the Intellectual Property Registry, and regional IP director Julio Vargas, who is based in the Costa Rica office, where he was appointed managing partner in May 2024.

The team at Consortium Legal draws on the bench strength of offices in Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua to advise financial institutions, insurers, and regional and global corporations on the management and protection of their intellectual property portfolios. With an active client roster spanning such sectors as manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, food and tech, the practice’s full service covers matters involving licensing agreements, opposition actions, domain names, patents, industrial designs, sanitary registrations, renewals, and trade mark and copyright surveillance. The practice is headed by intellectual property and competition law expert Darliss Gordon, whose expertise extends to the national phase of patent applications and the protection of denominations of origin.

LatinAlliance Nicaragua coordinates with the firm’s offices throughout Latin America to advise regional companies across the pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, packaging and engineering sectors on the management and protection of their intellectual property portfolios. The practice’s full offering covers matters ranging from coexistence and licensing agreements, trade mark portfolio management and trade mark oppositions to cease and desist letters and complex trade mark litigation. The team is steered from the firm’s Salvadoran office by regional IP director Fabiola Torres, who displays expertise in trade mark registrations, copyright, patents and licensing issues. Key support is provided in the Nicaraguan office by chief legal officer and head of corporate Ana Carolina Barquero, who specialises in patent protection and opposition litigation regarding the registration of distinctive signs.