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175: Cultural Intelligence Series - When cultural risk becomes legal risk: IP, compliance and the limits of AI
In IP, getting the language wrong isn’t a quality issue but a legal one.
James Lacey, CEO of Protect at RWS, joins our latest Cultural Intelligence Podcast episode to talk about something that rarely makes it into conversations about IP strategy: context.
Not just the legal context of a jurisdiction, but the full lifecycle context of a portfolio; where every decision, every filing, every ownership update is connected to what came before and what comes next.
A Chief IP Counsel James met in Taiwan put it simply: IP is too often seen as a cost centre managing legal rights. The shift is towards treating it as a value centre managing strategic assets. That reframe changes everything, including how you think about where AI fits in.
The human in the loop isn’t a safety net. It’s the whole architecture.
Guests
James joined the Executive Team in October 2025 as CEO, Protect. He is responsible for overseeing Protect’s overall strategic direction, leadership and growth, with a focus on supporting IP law firms and corporate IP departments in driving value across the IP lifecycle.
James has over 20 years’ experience in the IP industry, leading global teams and serving some of the world’s top corporate IP filers and IP law firms. He started his IP career at CPA Global, specializing in trademarks and held his first senior management position running a multi-territory service delivery function for CPA Global’s core renewals business. In 2018, he moved with his family to Hong Kong where he spent four years scaling and growing key APAC markets. Prior to joining RWS, James was Vice President of Clarivate’s Patent Annuity business.
His intricate knowledge of the IP industry, proven track record in leading global teams and deep understanding of customer requirements enable him to develop market-leading solutions across the IP lifecycle and drive operational excellence for the benefit of our IP customers. He has the ability to understand and deliver localized IP solutions in a diverse global IP market.
James holds a Business Studies degree from the University of Plymouth.
Outside of work, James enjoys travelling and experiencing new cultures with his wife and two boys. He stays active by playing football for an amateur team, regularly running by the River Thames and tending to his garden. He can also be found stood in a wet field on a Sunday morning coaching his son’s football team!
Hosts
Marine is RWS’s Head of Global Social Media, responsible for developing and implementing the company’s global social media strategy.
After graduating as a translator from German and English into French, Marine did her internship at RWS in Berlin as a translator and terminologist. After her internship, she continued to work for the RWS Berlin office as a technical translator for 5 years while continuing to learn about marketing and social media. She then did some consulting for RWS as a social media specialist and became RWS’s social media manager in 2021, managing the company social media channels and community.
Marine has a degree in translation and terminology from the UCLouvain in Belgium. In her free time, she enjoys learning foreign languages, doing sport and taking a walk in the sun to discover cute coffee places. She is based in Madrid, Spain.
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