Where should the London branch of the central division of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) go, if it has to be relocated due to the Brexit vote in the UK? To Milan? The Hague? Brussels? Any other city? Public lobbying has started in Italy with a letter of the Industrial Property Consultants Institute. The organization…
Although patent litigation in Europe is fragmented, businesses have been able to cope and a unitary system may not be strictly necessary for the patent system to function in Europe. However, the new UPC does represent an opportunity to improve the system via greater efficiency and consistency. Dr Luke McDonagh of the Law School at…
As well as bringing you a fun copyright quiz to keep you entertained over the rest of the summer, we’ve also prepared an overview of the top 3 most-read posts from each of our IP law blogs. Unsurprisingly, Brexit was the hot topic on all three blogs, but we also have a very interesting interview…
The UK’s Intellectual Property Office has published a statement on the future of IP law after the Brexit vote of 23 June 2016, saying there will be ‘no immediate changes’ regarding the Unitary Patent system. In its document ‘IP and BREXIT: The facts‘, the UK IPO writes: ‘there has been much speculation on the future of many intellectual…
Analysing whether, if the UK ratifies the UPC, further participation in the Unitary Patent system might be possible and on what legal basis. That is the main objective of a group of patent professionals in the UK, which has been convened by Simmons partner Kevin Mooney after the Brexit vote of 23 June 2016. Mooney is…
One month after the UK referendum, discussion has deepened and several papers have been published about the Brexit vote and the Unitary Patent system. Is it possible to both save the system and keep the UK in? EPO president Benoît Battistelli thinks the best case scenario would be for the UK to ‘go ahead as…
Can the Unitary Patent system still enter into force? Is it attractive without the UK or will companies rather stick with the established patent system as in force right now? According to Dr. Axel Walz, co-founder of the IP Dispute Resolution Forum (IPDR) in Munich, these topics have been discussed a lot among German colleagues…
President Benoit Battistelli of the European Patent Office hopes the United Kingdom will stay in the Unitary Patent system despite the Brexit vote of 23 June 2016. He has written this in a blogpost on the EPO website. Battistelli stresses ‘it is entirely up to the UK authorities to determine whether they want to participate…
Today, the 4th annual conference of Premier Cercle regarding the Unitary Patent and the Unified Patent Court took place in Munich. It will be no surprise that the outcome of the UK referendum was the “elephant in the room” during the conference. Nevertheless, everybody in the room agreed that the UK political situation may and…
Despite the UK’s Brexit vote, the preparations for the Unitary Patent and the Unified Patent Court will go on as planned. The UPC Preparatory Committee and the EPO Select Committee have declared this in a joint statement, issued on 1 July 2016. According to the statement, ‘last week’s vote in the United Kingdom in favour…
