General Principles
The IP representative is bound by absolute professional secrecy.
Indeed, Article L422-11 CPI provides:
In all matters and for all services referred to in Article L. 422-1, the IP representative must observe professional secrecy. This secrecy extends to consultations addressed to or intended for their client, professional correspondence exchanged with their client, a colleague, or an attorney, interview notes, and, more generally, to all documents in the file.
Therefore (and rightly so), the IP representative may not disclose any information relating to their consultations, the information entrusted to them by their client, etc.
Extension of Professional Secrecy
However, the IP representative is not the only one affected by their professional secrecy.
With Respect to Attorneys / Colleagues
In a ruling by the Paris Court of Appeal, Pole 1, Chamber 3, 24 November 2015, Case No. 14/16359, the professional secrecy attached to correspondence with an attorney was reaffirmed.
In this case, a letter exchanged between an IP representative and an attorney was excluded from the proceedings on the grounds that this correspondence was covered by professional secrecy.
With Respect to a Bailiff?
In a ruling by the Paris Court of Appeal, Pole 5, Chamber 2, 18 November 2016, Case No. 14/16970, the judges nevertheless held that the bailiff was not bound by professional secrecy and could therefore seize correspondence between an IP representative and their client.
This analysis by the Court of Appeal is surprising because professional secrecy is attached to the document itself, as per the letter of the law (L422-11 CPI). Thus, even if the bailiff is not covered by the Industrial Property Code, the judges should simply have noted (in my view) that the document was confidential and excluded it from the proceedings.
With Respect to Their Client?
The question may arise if the IP representative acquires sensitive information during a seizure operation, an expert examination at a third party’s premises, etc.
The ruling by the Paris Court of Appeal, Pole 1, 5th Chamber, 25 October 2018, Case No. 2018/15706 reaffirms that in such circumstances, the IP representative remains bound by secrecy and may not disclose confidential information even to their client.
Is the Client Bound by Secrecy?
The client of the IP representative, however, is free to waive (themselves) the professional secrecy attached to the various documents produced by their representative.
They may thus transmit any document to a third party without difficulty (even if produced by their representative).