About us

INGRES Institute

At the pulse of intellectual property law

The Institute for the Protection of Intellectual Property (INGRES) is the most active Swiss association in the field of intellectual property. It is not profit-oriented, open and has been committed to the further development of intellectual property law since 1985, regardless of particular interests.

INGRES promotes professional exchange between courts, authorities, companies, attorneys-at-law, patent attorneys and universities, even across borders.

Four annual events serve this purpose: The winter event with a ski weekend, where leading experts discuss the harmonisation of law in Europe. The Ittinger Workshop on Trademark Law in the picturesque Ittingen Charterhouse and the Zurich IP Retreat, which takes place in cooperation with ETH Zurich. INGRES also devotes special events to current topics, publishes the monthly INGRES NEWS and is involved in important projects such as legislative drafts.

The board members of INGRES

The board of the association INGRES consists of the following members:

Rechtsanwalt Dr. iur. Michael Ritscher, LL.M., nebenamtlicher Handelsrichter, als Präsident
Rechtsanwalt Dr.iur. Christoph Gasser, LL.M., nebenamtlicher Bundespatentrichter, als Geschäftsführer
Fürsprecher Peter Widmer als Quästor
Dr. iur. Lukas Abegg, Gerichtsschreiber am Bundesverwaltungsgericht
Professor Dr. iur. Stefan Bechtold
Patentanwalt Dr. sc. nat. Tobias Bremi, zweiter hauptamtlicher Bundespatentrichter
Rechtsanwältin lic. iur. Lara Dorigo, LL.M.
Rechtsanwalt Erich Herzog
Dr. iur. Vera Marantelli-Sonanini, Bundesverwaltungsrichterin
Rechtsanwalt Prof. Dr. iur. Florent Thouvenin
Patentanwalt Dipl. Ing. ETH Beat Weibel

Rechtsanwalt lic. iur. Benedikt Schmidt als Revisor

The honorary members

Prof. Dr. h.c. Paul Braendli †
Dr. iur. Alfred Briner †
Dr. iur. Eugène Brunner †
Dr. iur. Jean-Louis Comte †
Dr. iur. Lucas David
Patentanwältin Alexandra Frei
Dr. iur. David J. Meisser
Alt-Bundesrichter Franz B. Nyffeler †
Prof. Dr. iur. Manfred Rehbinder
Dr. iur. et Dipl. El.-Ing. ETH Rudolf A. Rentsch
Prof. Dr. iur. Kaspar Spoendlin †

Statutes of the association INGRES

STATUTES of 28 August 1985 (last amended on 5 July 2017)

Under the name Institute for Industrial Property Protection, an association exists with its registered office in Zurich in accordance with the Swiss Civil Code. The association’s symbol is INGRES.
The association aims to strengthen cooperation between academia and practice in the field of industrial property protection and to promote both the scientific understanding and the effectiveness of industrial property protection in the Swiss economy.
The General Assembly of members shall be held once a year. Decisions are taken by a simple majority of the members present. Amendments to the statutes and the dissolution of the association require a two-thirds majority of the members present.
The Executive Board consists of a President, a Vice President, and at least three additional board members. It constitutes itself and adopts internal regulations. It is authorized to publish materials in line with the association’s purpose and to organize conferences. It shall present an annual program and convene the annual general meeting held in Zurich in early summer at least 15 days in advance, including the agenda.
Admission as a member is granted upon written application by decision of the Executive Board. Resignation is possible at any time by written notice to the Board but does not exempt the member from paying the membership fee for the current year.
The association’s liabilities are covered exclusively by its assets. Its funds are generated through annual membership fees from members and partners of INGRES, sponsorship contributions, donations, and revenues from professional events. The annual fee amounts to CHF 270 for members, CHF 20 for persons in training, and CHF 1,100 for partners. The Executive Board may grant exemptions from the annual fee in individual cases.

Contact

Contact form

Write us your request directly online with the contact form.

For general questions
RA Dr. iur. Christoph Gasser, LL.M.
Postfach 1162
CH-8021 Zürich
Tel.: 058 220 37 07
Fax.: 058 220 37 01
Mail.: christoph.gasser@valfor.ch

INGRES NEWS Editorial Team
Christoph Gasser, Esq., Ph.D. in Law, LL.M.
P.O. Box 1162
CH-8021 Zurich
Email: Christoph Gasser

Fspr. Dr. iur. Stephan Beutler, LL.M.
Fspr. Dr. iur. Robert M. Stutz, LL.M.
Fspr. Muriel Künzi
Thunstrasse 63
CH-3006 Bern
E-Mail: bks@torneys.ch