Alvaro Fernandez-Mora

Profile

Biography

Dr Alvaro Fernandez-Mora
LLM (Harvard), DPhil (Oxon)

Lecturer

I joined York Law School in 2021, having previously worked as an Assistant Professor at Central European University. I have earned degrees from the University of Oxford (DPhil), Harvard Law School (LLM) and Universidad Pontificia Comillas de Madrid ICADE (LLB). Before pursuing my doctoral studies, I worked as an associate lawyer at Hogan Lovells LLP’s intellectual property litigation department in Madrid.

My research interests lie at the intersection between intellectual property law and other fields –notably human rights, competition law and economics–, often from a comparative perspective. My work has been published in the Berkeley Journal of International Law (BJIL), the International Review of Intellectual Property and Competition Law (IIC) or the Intellectual Property Quarterly (IPQ). I have presented my work at conferences and workshops organized by Harvard University, Stanford University, the University of Oxford or the London School of Economics, amongst others.

Research

Overview

• Intellectual property law
• Trade mark law
• Human rights law
• Freedom of expression
• Competition Law
• Comparative law

My research interests lie at the intersection between intellectual property law and other fields –notably human rights, competition law and economics–, often from a comparative perspective. My ongoing research projects explore: (a) the interface between trademarks and freedom of expression as brands are evolving to become expressive artefacts in the contemporary marketplace; and (b) the role that reinforced trademark protection is playing in enabling and entrenching certain anti-competitive effects of trademarks to the detriment of consumers. Other research projects that I have worked in the past include: (a) analysing the degree of (in)consistency governing EU trade mark law; or (b) reflecting on the doctrinal challenges posed by the ‘functions theory’ in EU trade mark law as interpreted by the CJEU. 

Publications

Selected publications

Peer reviewed journals 

• 'A Counterintuitive Approach to the Interaction Between Trademarks and Freedom of Expression in the US and Europe: A Two-Way Relationship’ (2021) 39(2) Berkeley Journal of International Law (BJIL) 293
• 'Trade Mark Functions in Business Practice: Mapping the Law Through the Search for Economic Content’ (2021) 52(10) International Review of Intellectual Property and Competition Law (IIC) 1370
• 'Fragmentation in European Trade Mark Law: The Public Policy and Morality Exclusions’ (2020) 4 Intellectual Property Quarterly (IPQ) 271

Press 

• ‘La mujer perfecta es la que no habla nunca’ (El País, 2019)
• ‘Por qué el talento va a tardar en volver a casa’ (El País, 2018)
• ‘Hombres: ni estamos ni se nos espera’ (El País, 2017)
• ‘Hablando desde las emociones’ (El País, 2017)
• ‘Orgullo del orgullo’ (El País, 2016)

Teaching

Undergraduate

• Intellectual Property Law 
• International Trade Law & Regulation 
• Advanced Legal Skills 

Postgraduate

• Legal Systems: Sources and Operation