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5 July 2018
Conference participants voice strong
support for the Unitary Patent package and are eager to see the start of the
new system
More
than 200 representatives of industry, government, academia and the legal
profession gathered at the EPO in Munich this week to discuss the latest developments and
preparations for the Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court (UPC) at a
conference hosted by the European Patent Office and organised by Premier
Cercle.
“The Unitary Patent
and the Unified Patent Court are sources of great untapped potential,” said
António Campinos during
his first keynote speech as EPO President. “This project will form a vital
additional tool for providing access to the IP market. And in essence, that is
what the EPO is about – facilitating access to effective and high-quality patents.”
Mr Campinos also expressed his confidence
that the UPC and the Unitary Patent would come into operation very soon,
explaining that 16 Member States
have already ratified the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court and that there is
good reason to believe that the new system will start with close to 20 states.
“We now stand on the cusp of a fully operational patent for the EU,” he said.
In a keynote
address, Margot Fröhlinger, the EPO’s Principal Director for the Unitary
Patent, European & International Legal Affairs, stressed the importance of
applying passion, patience and perseverance in the light of the current delays
and uncertainties.
The Chairman of the
Select Committee, Jérôme Debrulle, and Alexander Ramsay, Chairman of the UPC
Preparatory Committee, outlined the current state-of-play in preparations for
the implementation of the Unitary Patent package in two separate panels. Both confirmed
that everything is ready for the start of the
system, but that this now depends on external factors, in particular the
decision by the German Federal Constitutional Court on the pending complaint
against the German ratification of the UPC Agreement.
In a mock trial, a panel of
renowned judges from across Europe discussed the different approaches to requests
for preliminary injunctions in the various jurisdictions and provided some insights
into how the UPC may be dealing with such requests. Throughout the conference, Users also reiterated their strong support for the new system and called for a quick
entry into operation, urging for
options to ensure post-Brexit participation of the UK in the UP/UPC are
considered and solutions found.
Further information