The Viability of the Unitary Patent Package After the UK’s Ratification of the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court

2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 136-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Aránzazu Gandía Sellens
Keyword(s):  
Unified Patent Court ◽  
Unitary Patent

4. Introduction to European Patent Law

2019 ◽  
pp. 99-119
Author(s):  
Justine Pila ◽  
Paul L.C. Torremans
Keyword(s):  
Patent Protection ◽  
Patent Law ◽  
Patent System ◽  
European Patent ◽  
European Law ◽  
European Patent Convention ◽  
Unified Patent Court ◽  
Unitary Patent

This chapter introduces the European law of patents and related rights with a discussion of the nature of patents as limited-term monopoly rights granted in respect of new, inventive, and industrially applicable inventions and the routes to obtaining patent protection in Europe. It then considers the existing European patent system established by the European Patent Convention 1973/2000, including its basis in state-based conceptions of IP territoriality, and the challenges presented to that system by globalization and developing technology. And finally, it discusses the long-standing pursuit of a unitary patent and unified patent court for Europe, including the reasons for each, and the features of the proposed Unitary Patent Package of 2012/2013.

Growth companies and procedural safeguards in European patent litigation

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 168-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krista Rantasaari
Keyword(s):  
Patent Protection ◽  
Patent System ◽  
European Patent ◽  
Court System ◽  
Patent Litigation ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Unified Patent Court ◽  
Procedural Safeguards ◽  
Enforcement Mechanisms ◽  
Unitary Patent

The unitary patent system with the establishment of the Unified Patent Court will lead to unitary patent protection covering most European Union countries. Moreover, it will lead to litigation with the same geographical reach. One potential concern related to increasing litigation is the so-called ‘patent trolls’ (non-practicing entities) that purchase patents for the purpose of portfolio building or company financing. One of the key expressed justifications of the unitary patent system was to support small- and medium-sized enterprises by securing them easier and wider access to patents. The aim of this article is to examine procedural safeguards from the perspective of the start-up and growth companies. These safeguards protect start-up and growth companies when acting as defendants. As a corollary, they weaken the enforcement mechanisms from the perspective of the plaintiff. The safeguards addressed in this article are fee shifting, preliminary injunctions, and bifurcation. As the Unified Patent Court system is still evolving, the current state of European patent litigation in key jurisdiction countries (Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands) is analysed. This article explores how these safeguards evolve in the unitary patent regime and their potential to reduce uncertainty for start-up and growth companies when acting as defendants.

Key Elements of the Unitary Patent Package Adopted by the European Union

2013 ◽  
Vol 52 (4) ◽  
pp. 1037-1058
Author(s):  
Yohan Benizri
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Unified Patent Court ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Unitary Patent

For more than four decades, those who supported the creation of a single patent regime with European-wide legal effects must have felt a lot like Sisyphus, struggling pointlessly towards an unreachable goal. This may be about to change in light of the adoption of the “unitary patent package” by the European Union (EU), provided the thirteen Member States (including France, Germany, and the United Kingdom) ultimately ratify the Unified Patent Court Agreement (UPCA).

scholarly journals Problematyka wybranych zagadnień jednolitej ochrony patentowej

Radca Prawny ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 191-217
Author(s):  
Tomasz Orfin
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Patent Protection ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
European Patent ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Full Implementation ◽  
Legal Structure ◽  
Proposed Model ◽  
Unified Patent Court ◽  
Unitary Patent

Problems related to selected issues of unitary patent protection Unitary patent protection is one of the key challenges for the European Union. The current initiatives, which – despite being just a short step away from full implementation due to legal and formal issues, such as the complex legal structure or non-legal claims concerning their negative impact on the economy and competitiveness of enterprises – still raise doubts and uncertainties. The aim of this article is to illustrate the problem of unitary patent protection on selected issues concerning the European patent with unitary effect and the Unified Patent Court. The obstacles that prevent the implementation of the Unified Patent Court are presented. Critical voices assessing the proposed model of unitary patent protection are also presented and discussed.

scholarly journals Advantages and Disadvantages of the Single European Patent / Prednosti in slabosti enotnega evropskega patenta

2015 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 24-34
Author(s):  
Klara Glazer
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Patent Law ◽  
European Patent ◽  
Forum Shopping ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Unified Patent Court ◽  
Pros And Cons ◽  
Unitary Patent ◽  
Reduction Of Costs

Abstract In February 2013, the European Union successfully completed more than 30 years of negotiations and formally signed an agreement establishing a single European patent. The agreement brought about a more competitive patent law compared with that in the United States and Japan. The agreement resulted in a number of advantages, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, such as the reduction of costs by as much as 80%, simplification of procedures, and the adoption of the Unified Patent Court. With the new unitary patent, intellectual property will grow in importance. Yet experts warn that the new patent results in new forms of unwanted behavior, such as forum shopping and the emergence of patent trolls. This study presents both sides-the pros and cons-to predict the effects on business and cover the widest possible range of experts, providing their views on the topic.

scholarly journals Still Unifying? The Future of the Unified Patent Court

2021 ◽  
Vol 52 (9) ◽  
pp. 1143-1160
Author(s):  
Anna Wszołek
Keyword(s):  
Green Light ◽  
European Patent ◽  
Constitutional Court ◽  
Patent Litigation ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Federal Constitutional ◽  
Unified Patent Court ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Unitary Patent

AbstractSince its launching, the Unified Patent Court (UPC) project has faced obstacles and scepticism from some EU Member States. When the United Kingdom ratified the UPC Agreement in 2018, it seemed that there was nothing left but to wait for a positive decision of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany on the ratification by that country, so that finally the UPC could start its activity. Nevertheless, 2020 brought events that make one look back and reflect on the project itself. The UK withdrew its ratification and the Federal Constitutional Court ruled the German ratification process of the UPC Agreement unconstitutional. Then two new complaints were submitted to the Federal Constitutional Court, which this summer finally gave the green light to the ratification, but it seems the UPC project has already split Europe. The question that arises is whether, in the context of last year’s events and the fracture between the states, the unitary patent system can still be seen as unifying the European patent litigation system. This article discusses the examples of Poland, Hungary and the UK, as countries that refuse to participate in the system due to its interference in their internal legal systems and sovereignty, and other examples of fractures visible in the UPC.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document