What IP Hills does

IP Hills is a Belgian intellectual property law firm founded in 2010 by Axel Plas and Thomas Coppens, providing corporate legal services across the full IP lifecycle — patents, trademarks, designs, copyrights, contracts, IP valuation and tax optimisation. The firm operates from six offices across Belgium (Ghent, Leuven, Brussels, Mechelen, Louvain-la-Neuve) and Luxembourg, serving a diversified client base of more than 400 active companies that includes startups, scale-ups, family-owned SMEs, universities, research centers, multinational corporations and accelerators.

Its service offering is built around four core practice areas — patents, trademarks, designs and contracts — delivered through a multilingual team of 30+ professionals with academic, scientific, technical and legal backgrounds. The firm positions itself as a one-stop shop with specialisation in software-driven patent engineering and cross-jurisdictional portfolio management, relying on a sales-led, relationship-driven go-to-market motion anchored in direct office consultations and a client portal.

In June 2023, IP Hills was acquired by France-headquartered pan-European IP firm Ipsilon Group (founded 2001 by Valérie Feray) with backing from Waterland Private Equity (over €14 billion AUM). The transaction nearly doubled Ipsilon's Benelux revenue and consolidated IP Hills, Lecomte & Partners (Luxembourg) and Distinctive (Luxembourg) under a unified Ipsilon brand, positioning the combined entity as a top-5 IP firm in Belgium with extended reach into France, Germany and the United States. Revenue is generated through professional-services fees (quote-based, undisclosed); no app, API or software product offering is sold.

Name

IP Hills

Legal name

IP Hills

Website

https://iphills.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

IP Hills is a Belgian intellectual property law firm, founded in 2010, providing patent, trademark, design and contract services to 400+ startups, SMEs, knowledge institutions and multinationals across Belgium and Luxembourg. It operates under the Ipsilon Group following its 2023 acquisition.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Intellectual Property Services

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Patent Prosecution & Portfolio Management (BPAHAMAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

IP Filing, Annuities & Renewals Administration (BPAHAMAJ), IP Compliance, Anti-Counterfeiting & Enforcement (BPAHAMAK), IP Licensing, Transactions & Technology Transfer (BPAHAMAF), IP Search, Watch & Competitive Intelligence (BPAHAMAI)

Keywords

• Intellectual property services
• Patent registration
• Trademark protection
• Design registration
• IP portfolio management

Headquarters

HQ city

Gent

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Intellectual Property Consulting Services: Professional services revenue from IP strategy, research, registration, monitoring, enforcement, business processes, contracts, valuation and tax optimisation for patents, trademarks, designs and copyrights.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

IP Hills provides comprehensive intellectual property services spanning patents, trademarks, designs, and IP-related contracts for businesses. The firm offers the full IP lifecycle including strategy, research, registration, monitoring, enforcement, valuation, and tax optimization, delivered through a multidisciplinary team of attorneys, patent engineers, and paralegals based across Belgium and Luxembourg.

Product overview

IP Hills, operating under the Ipsilon brand, is a pan-European intellectual property firm that offers a comprehensive suite of IP services. The company operates as an integrated service organization combining patents, trademarks, designs, and contracts into a unified offering. In the Benelux region, Ipsilon represents the unified brand under which IP Hills (Belgium), Lecomte & Partners (Luxembourg), and Distinctive (Luxembourg) provide full-range IP services. The firm also offers additional services including IP strategy, research, registration, monitoring, enforcement, business processes, valuation, and tax optimisation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Serving more than 400 active client companies
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Cabinet Lavoix: French IP firm offering patents, trademarks, designs and IP litigation across Europe. Provides a similar specialist IP positioning to Ipsilon in France and competes for the same mid-market and enterprise clients as IP Hills.
• Plasseraud IP: French-headquartered IP firm with pan-European footprint providing patents, trademarks, designs and IP litigation. The closest direct comparable to Ipsilon Group's home market (France), making it a structural peer to IP Hills under the Ipsilon umbrella.
• Novagraaf: Pan-European IP service group with strong Benelux presence providing patent and trademark prosecution, portfolio management and IP strategy. Closely matches IP Hills' full-spectrum offering and target customer segments.
• Gevers: Belgian IP firm headquartered in Brussels offering patents, trademarks, designs and IP legal services across the Benelux. Directly comparable to IP Hills in services, geography and client mix (SMEs, multinationals, research institutions).
• Arnold & Siedsma: Benelux-based IP firm with offices in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany offering patent, trademark and design services. Comparable in scale and service breadth to IP Hills/Ipsilon Belgium–Luxembourg.
• De Clercq & Partners: Belgian IP boutique offering patent, trademark and design prosecution with strong technical/scientific expertise. Competes head-to-head with IP Hills in the Belgian mid-market and research-institution segment.

Broad incumbents

• Marks & Clerk: Large UK-origin international IP firm with offices across Europe, North America and Asia. Overlaps with IP Hills on patent and trademark prosecution but operates at much greater scale with broader geographic reach.
• NautaDutilh: Leading Benelux law firm with a substantial IP practice serving multinationals. Competes for IP mandates from large Belgian/Luxembourg corporates but as a full-service law firm rather than a specialist.
• HGF (Hargreaves Hale & Goodall): UK-headquartered IP specialist firm with significant European presence in patents, trademarks and IP litigation. Comparable to Ipsilon in pan-European IP coverage but with deeper UK bench.
• Bird & Bird: Global law firm with a leading IP practice serving technology, life sciences and media clients. Competes for multinational IP mandates in Belgium/Luxembourg but as part of a much broader legal portfolio.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ip-hills
• Xx.com/ip_hills

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about IP Hills