What You Need to Know About the Unified Patent Court and Unitary Patent
This article is based on a Feb. 2023 Womble Bond Dickinson webinar featuring WBD Partners James Love (UK) and Ryan Cagle, Fabio Marino and Karthika Perumal (U.S.). Patent owners soon will be entering a brave new world...more
After years of setbacks, the EU Unified Patent Court (UPC) will begin its work on June 1, 2023. Germany’s ratification of the UPC Agreement on Feb. 17, 2023, triggered a countdown under Article 89 of the UPC Agreement for the...more
The European (EP) patent landscape will shift in 2023 with the launch of the unitary patent system, consisting of unitary patents and a Unitary Patent Court. All current EP patent right holders now have a decision with regard...more
Should I stay or should I go? This is the question current owners of European patents and applicants for pending applications are asking as the European Patent with Unitary Effect (“Unitary Patent”) and Unified Patent Court...more
The Administrative Council of the new European Unified Patent Court stated that the target date for the EU Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court to come into effect will be on April 1, 2023. However, there is still a...more
A major change to the European patent system is expected in 2023. Currently, patent owners: 1) validate European patents in individual States, 2) pay renewal fees, and 3) enforce the patent independently in each individual...more
After decades of drafting and negotiating, the Unified Patent Court ("UPC") is finally set to go ahead. The year 2022 has been dynamic for this new European court: The regulations on the unitary patent entered into force...more
The new Unified Patent Court (UPC) has been established by virtue of the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court (the "UPCA"). The UPC will be a court of all participating EU Member States, which will have exclusive competence to...more
Patent protection in the European Union (EU) is expensive. An applicant may file a patent application in an individual country, but it is generally more efficient to file through the European Patent Office (EPO) when the...more
The introduction of the Unitary Patent and the corresponding Unified Patent Court (UPC) system is set to transform the patent litigation landscape in the European Union (EU). The potential impact on the business success of...more
Seven years after the Member States of the EU signed the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court (“UPCA”), the Unitary Patent (“UP”) and the Unified Patent Court (“UPC”) are likely to commence during the second half of 2022. This...more
For further insights related to the Unitary Patent and the Unified Patent Court click here. Proprietors of European Patents will have the opportunity to avoid jurisdiction of the Unified Patent Court by filing so-called...more
Final preparations by sixteen EU member states for their Unified Patent Court (UPC) and Unitary Patent (UP) began on 19 January 2022, following Austria’s deposit on the previous day of its ratification of the Protocol on...more
As has been widely reported in the recent weeks, the UK government is currently trying to progress negotiations on a withdrawal agreement and a framework for its future relationship with the EU. However, uncertainty remains...more
On Monday the UK government published a series of notices on the impact of a no-deal Brexit on intellectual property right-holders....more
The UK government’s draft EU Withdrawal Bill (the “Brexit Bill“) aims to incorporate EU directives and regulations into UK domestic law in their current form immediately following Brexit (“Retained EU Law“). This article...more
On June 23, 2016, British citizens voted in a referendum in favor of exiting the European Union. Termed “Brexit,” the United Kingdom’s departure effected global markets and caused the British pound to fall to its lowest level...more
As everyone knows, in June, the United Kingdom passed the BREXIT referendum (driven by British voters), voting to exit the European Union. What affect does BREXIT have on intellectual property rights in the United Kingdom...more
Unitary patents in Europe - The European unitary patent and Unitary Patent Court (UPC) are slated to go into effect in early 2017. These monumental changes will have a significant impact on the ways patent rights are...more
The process of Brexit will take time, and the implications for our clients’ business will unfold over time. Our MoFo Brexit Task Force is coordinating across all our offices and working with clients on your key concerns and...more
New unified patent grant and patent court systems, which were to have taken effect in early 2017, will likely be stalled because of Britain’s June vote to leave the EU, commentators and member nations fear. BACKGROUND...more
It's difficult to turn on the news and not hear something about the historic vote by Britain to leave the European Union. While the Brexit vote already has had an immediate effect on global economic markets, the legal effects...more
The process of Brexit will take many years, and the implications for our clients’ business will unfold over time. Our MoFo Brexit Task Force is coordinating Brexit-related legal analysis across all of our offices, and...more
In Depth - UK Withdrawal Process - The United Kingdom will continue to be an EU member until procedures are completed for exiting the European Union, which is likely to be a long process. Under EU Treaty rules,...more
In a June 23, 2016 referendum, the combined electorates of the United Kingdom and Gibraltar voted in favor of the United Kingdom, and consequently Gibraltar, leaving the European Union (EU). According to Article 50 of...more