From Excel to Excellence: How Daniel Law Built a Data-Driven Competitive Advantage in Brazilian IP 

IP Pilot speaks to Richard Gris from Daniel Law on how one of Brazil’s top-ranked IP firms transformed cold outreach into strategic client acquisition using data intelligence

Eight years ago, Daniel Legal & IP Strategy operated like most law firms. Richard Gris, now the firm’s Business Intelligence Coordinator, recalls those early days when Excel was the only path forward.

“Eight years ago, we just used Excel spreadsheets. We went into our internal operating systems, extracted reports, and did the analysis on Excel. It actually served us well at that time.”

But soon, “serving well” wasn’t enough. While other law firms in the market remained comfortable with traditional approaches, Daniel Law saw an opportunity through big data and embarked on a journey that would fundamentally change how they acquire clients, price services, and compete in an increasingly crowded market.

Today, the firm generates new business meetings across 85 countries, strategically prices based on competitive intelligence, and has built what Richard calls “a competitive edge” that maybe other competitors getting into this industry now won’t have.

This journey to transformation didn’t happen overnight. Daniel Law first built their own data infrastructure, creating crawlers to extract information from the Brazilian PTO, then expanding to cover the American PTO, WIPO, and others.

“We have crawlers that go into the Brazilian PTO, the American PTO, WIPO, and they just gather data in real time. They bring that data into our data lake, we have ETL processes transforming that data, and then we have visualizations in Power BI.”

But even with this technical foundation, a crucial piece was missing. The firm could analyze applicants and filing patterns, but they lacked insight into the decision-making networks that drive international IP work – which firm represented the applicant in their home country?

“One [piece] of the information that was really important for us that we didn’t have back then was the information about the representatives. … I know that this applicant files this many patents in Brazil, but who represents the applicant in its home country?”

This gap led Daniel Law to IP Pilot in 2020. Daniel Law’s leadership encouraged the team to explore and define new frontiers in the market. As Richard explains, their managing partner “encourages us to experiment and to try new things”. And this is how IP Pilot was incorporated into the competitive intelligence strategy at Daniel Law. 

An overview of comprehensive case exchange data on IP Pilot

The real test of their data-driven approach came in practice. Rather than generic business development, Daniel Law began using their enhanced intelligence for targeted client acquisition.

“We sent cold calls that actually worked because they were really based on data. So why am I getting in touch with this law firm in London? Because we have something to offer them”.

The methodology was strategically sophisticated, but simple to execute. By analyzing filing patterns, agent networks, and market gaps, Daniel Law could approach prospects with genuine value propositions rather than generic pitches, giving them the best chance of success while saving time and resources.

“We never worked with that law firm, and from our analysis in London and in the region, we could tell that that law firm would be like a nice prospect for our commercial team to get in touch.”

This wasn’t luck, it was systematic intelligence applied to business development. The firm had transformed from reactive service provider to proactive strategic partner that provides a realistic meaningful “better future” to the new partner firm.

An overview on how to conduct a reach in IP Pilot to identify prospects by region and opportunity

Perhaps the most ambitious application of their data strategy emerged in what Richard calls their “reciprocity project.” Over six months, the team analyzed potential partners across 85 countries, creating a database of nearly 10,000 law firms with the assistance of IP Pilot.

The logic was compelling: when Daniel Law needs to send cases internationally, why not prioritize firms that have the greatest potential to send work back to Brazil, and more importantly, Daniel Law?

“We’re sending a case to Vietnam. What is the law firm in Vietnam that has the most potential to send back cases to us? Because you don’t know anyone in Vietnam.”

But the analysis went deeper than simple volume metrics. Richard and his team identified markets where Daniel Law faced no existing competitive relationships – untapped opportunities for mutual benefit.

“This law firm has the potential to send cases back to Daniel Law. And it also hasn’t gotten any cases from any Brazilian firm. So, we don’t have any competitors on this reciprocity venture.”

An example of Outbound Case Flow inside IP Pilot

The data transformation then extended far beyond client acquisition. Daniel Law began using representative intelligence for competitive pricing strategies, an application that demonstrates the sophistication of their approach.

“When a law firm sends us a budget request, we can look into that law firm’s profile, and we can search with which law firms they work in Brazil. When you know with which law firms they work in Brazil, we can make this decision of how aggressive we should be in terms of pricing.”

This represents a fundamental shift from cost-plus pricing to market-intelligent pricing. The firm could now customize its proposals based on real competitive context rather than guesswork, leading to more positive outcomes.

The platform also democratized access to intelligence across the organization. Rather than centralizing analysis in Richard’s business intelligence department, Daniel Law expanded access throughout the firm.

“We could expand the access to the platform. So IP Pilot works in a way that you can create unlimited accounts. So that’s really useful because you can hand the account for someone in a business unit.”

An example of Important Partners inside IP Pilot

As Richard reflects on the current competitive landscape, he comes to a conclusion: firms that resist data-driven approaches are positioning themselves poorly for the future.

“I think the firms that are resisting, that are hesitant to use a data-driven approach, they’re going to have a hard time navigating the next years in this market, because the market is more competitive.”

New players are entering the Brazilian IP market with aggressive pricing and technological capabilities. But Daniel Law’s six-year head start in data intelligence has created what Richard describes as a sustainable competitive advantage.

“When we add technology, when we add our expertise and data to that equation, we have this competitive edge that maybe other competitors getting into this industry now won’t have.”

The firm isn’t resting on this advantage. Richard hints at the next phase of their evolution: predictive analytics.

“We can look very well into the past, but now from now on, we want to try to predict the future as well. So for that, we need large amounts of data.”

Daniel Law’s transformation from Excel-dependent to data-intelligent didn’t require a massive technological upheaval. It required vision, experimentation, and the courage to invest in capabilities that competitors dismissed as unnecessary. 

The firm’s success in generating new business across 85 countries, pricing strategically based on competitive intelligence, and building reciprocal relationships globally demonstrates what becomes possible when legal expertise meets business intelligence. 

“The market is getting more commoditized, but there’s also opportunity for you to show your strengths… to show the difference that a law firm like ours has from these kinds of companies.” 

About Daniel Law

Founded in 1959, Daniel Law is one of Brazil’s leading intellectual property law firms. With over 200 professionals and six decades of experience, the firm consistently ranks in the top tier for intellectual property services in Brazil according to Chambers, Legal 500, and other leading directories. The firm serves domestic and international clients across patents, trademarks, litigation, and IP strategy.

About IP Pilot

IP Pilot is the world’s leading patent and trademark intelligence platform, providing law firms and corporations with comprehensive data and analytics to drive strategic decision-making in intellectual property. The platform covers over 100 million patent applications from 120+ jurisdictions and 170 million trademark filings from 180+ jurisdictions, enabling users to analyze filing strategies, identify business opportunities, and optimize their IP operations.