Matthijs Schonewille

Matthijs Schonewille has been a lawyer since 2014 and specializes in the fields of intellectual property law and litigation. He assists national and international clients in cases involving trademarks, designs, trade secrets and ICT, among others. Matthijs has extensive litigation experience and regularly litigates before courts in first instance or on appeal, or in arbitration. He regularly assists clients in cross-border disputes involving multiple jurisdictions. Matthijs assists and advises his clients in the assessment and drafting of agreements related to intellectual property and commercial law.

In recent years, Matthijs has also increasingly focused on the rise of Artificial Intelligence and he closely follows developments surrounding the European AI Act. He regularly advises clients on the impact of this new legislation on their businesses and activities.

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:

  • Trademarks, design rights, copyrights and trade names
  • Litigious enforcement of intellectual property rights and protection of trade secrets in the Netherlands and Europe
  • IT and Artificial intelligence
  • Dutch civil procedural law
  • IP enforcement through customs and parallel trade
  • Drafting and reviewing (commercial) agreements (such as purchase, option, licensing, consignment, distribution and agency)

DEGREE PROGRAMMES

  • 2013: Leiden University, Master Company Law with an emphasis on intellectual property rights
  • 2013: Temple University Beasley School of Law, Philadelphia (USA), LL.M.

MEMBERSHIPS

  • Member of the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI)
  • Member of the Association for AI Attorneys (VAIA)
  • Member of the Netherlands Association for Procedural Law (NVvP)

LANGUAGES

  • Dutch
  • English

Endorsements

Matthijs was recognized as a ‘Rising star’ in 2018 by Managing Intellectual Property IP Stars, and in 2024 and 2025 as a ‘Notable practicioner’

Publications

  • J.M. Eck, D.W.R. Henderickx, M.R.A. Schonewille, ‘Terugblik Octrooirecht 2017’, Berichten IE maart/april 2018, afl. 2, p. 68 – 74.
  • M.R.A. Schonewille, ‘Mijn en dijn: de nieuwe rol van robots.txt als auteursrechtelijk voorbehoud bij tekst- en datamining, noot bij Rb. Amsterdam HowardsHome’, AI-forum 2025/1

Blogs (in Dutch)