Bench — Boutique litigation firm

The firm

We keep the bench short and the standard high.

Bench is new. The people are not — behind the firm sit decades of litigation experience at the front line of corporate, commercial, IP and IT disputes.

Bench was founded in 2026 on a straightforward premise: that the best litigation is done by a small group of senior lawyers who know a file completely — not by a pyramid of people each holding one corner of it. What we add is not the document, which any tool can now produce, but the strategy, judgment and closeness behind it.

We act for companies in their most consequential disputes: shareholder and board conflicts, intellectual property, technology and software failures, and the commercial agreements that so often sit at the centre of the argument — before the courts, and equally through mediation and arbitration where that serves the client better. Every matter is led by a partner and supported by our associates, from first call to final resolution.

We are deliberately boutique. Small enough to guarantee the quality of every file, large enough to carry weight — and honest enough to tell you plainly what a case is worth, including when the right answer is not to litigate at all.

Practice

Litigation first. Everything built around it.

Corporate Litigation

Shareholder and joint-venture disputes, board and governance conflicts, director liability, and post-acquisition claims. The disputes that determine who controls a company and on what terms.

IP Litigation

Trademarks, copyright, designs, trade secrets and know-how. Enforcement and defence before the Belgian and European courts, including urgent proceedings where speed decides the outcome.

IT Litigation

Failed implementations, software and SaaS disputes, licensing conflicts, data and security incidents. We take the time to understand the technology, so we can argue it ourselves rather than leave it to the experts alone.

Commercial litigation & Contracting

Unfair market practices, service agreements, general terms and B2B contracting. Because we litigate these agreements when they fail, we know how a clause holds up in court — and draft accordingly.

Mediation & Arbitration

Resolution outside the courtroom, when that serves you better: mediation, domestic and international arbitration, and negotiated settlement. The same rigour as litigation, aimed at a faster and more discrete outcome.

Approach

What you can always expect from us.

Partner-led

A partner leads every file and stays close to it, supported by our associates. The lawyer you meet is the lawyer running your case.

Close to the client

We look past the file to your business and what is really at stake for you. Good litigation starts by understanding that.

Technically fluent

In IP and IT disputes we get to grips with the technology ourselves, so we can argue it clearly rather than lean on experts alone.

Transparent

Straight answers about what a case will cost and can realistically achieve — and news from us before you have to ask for it.

People

Two partners. Two disciplines.

Your matter goes to the partner whose field it is and stays with them — supported by our associates — from first call to final resolution.

Dorien Taeymans

Partner — IP & IT Litigation, Technology, Unfair Commercial Practices, Contracting

"It is about the client and their interests — never the lawyer's ego."

Dorien works across four disciplines: intellectual property, technology contracting, unfair market practices and technology litigation. Her practice runs from copyright and trademark matters to complex licensing arrangements and disputes over failed innovation and IT projects, unfair commercial practices, trade secrets and the unlawful poaching of staff. She starts from the business rather than the statute — what is the model, and what is the real operational consequence — and stays with a file until every implication is clear. Pragmatic, solution-driven and direct, she values the constant interplay between advising and litigating.

EducationBachelor of Laws and Master in Civil Law & International and European Law, University of Antwerp, both cum laude.
AbroadA semester at Stellenbosch University, South Africa, focused on international commercial arbitration and international and children's rights law.
AdvancedAdvanced master (MaNaMa) in IP and ICT Law, KU Leuven.
BeforeTen years at Liedekerke in Brussels.
AlsoEditorial board member of Computerrecht; member of the Benelux Association for Trademark and Design Law.

dorien.taeymans [at] bench.be LinkedIn

Ahmed Tayane

Partner — Corporate & Commercial Litigation, Restructuring

"Direct, commercial, and willing to take a position rather than hedge."

Ahmed leads commercial and corporate disputes, post-acquisition claims, enforcement and seizure proceedings, debt recovery, and insolvency and restructuring work. He built an international career early — scholarships, a period at the University of Michigan Law School, an internship in Tokyo — before spending a decade acting for multinationals, funds and banks at Loyens & Loeff. Five years as general counsel of a London investment fund managing €6 billion across Europe, the US and the UAE sharpened an in-house instinct for what businesses actually need from their lawyers. Legal500 recognised him early as a Next Generation Lawyer and Rising Star.

EducationLaw degree, University of Antwerp; at the University of Michigan Law School.
BeforeLoyens & Loeff, where he helped establish the insolvency and restructuring team.
TeachingPractice assistant at KU Leuven, 2015–2019, teaching master's students.
In-houseSenior manager and general counsel of the LRC Group, 2018–2023, launching two Luxembourg funds and a Malta-based fund manager.
FocusCorporate, commercial and insolvency law, with deep cross-border experience.

ahmed.tayane [at] bench.be LinkedIn

A boutique firm for disputes that decide things.