On 4 July 2011, the Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court published a judgment dated 10 May 2011 approved en banc (i.e. by the full Court) shedding light on two important points: (i) the scope of the doctrine of equivalents; and (ii) the effect of articles 27.1 and 70 of TRIPS on the effects of…
During EPO opposition proceedings, patentees have historically been able to avoid discussing clarity by combining granted claims rather than using the description as basis for amendments. The landmark cases T 227/88 and especially T 367/96 have been relied on to support this position. However, some technical boards of appeal are now starting to engage in…
In Denmark, a patentee may opt to apply for a utility model registration in addition to a patent, provided that the conditions for the grant of both rights are fulfilled. One of the strategic advantages of applying for both rights in Denmark is that the utility model registration is not subject to as thorough a…
The Hargreaves Review, or to refer to it by its official title, “A Review of Intellectual Property and Growth” by Professor Ian Hargreaves, was commissioned by the UK coalition government in 2010 to report on various issues pertaining to intellectual property with a particular focus on copyright, particularly in the online environment, as well as…
Imagine: Wouldn’t it be fantastic to have one single patent which you could apply for at the WPO, the World Patent Office? A World Patent, which would be valid worldwide and which could be enforced in each single country of the world with worldwide effect? Decisions of the national local chambers of the World Patent…
As previously discussed, the English Court of Appeal has clearly stated its support for judicial collaboration facilitating de facto harmonisation of patent law in Europe (Grimme Landmaschinenfabrik GmbH v Scott [2010] EWCA Civ 1110). However, in a recent decision in the English Patents Court (Lundbeck v Norpharma and Infosint [2011] EWHC 907), Floyd J. expressed…
In the recent case of Schütz v Werit, the Court of Appeal examined the boundary between repair and making under the English implementation of Article 25 of the Community Patent Convention. The claimants’ patent in question was for intermediate bulk containers (IBCs), in particular IBCs comprising two parts: a cage and a large plastic container…
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has now issued its long awaited Opinion 1/09 on the draft agreement concerning the creation of a unified patent litigation system (UPLS). As is well known, this draft agreement drew on many provisions introduced for the first time by the European Patent Litigation Agreement (EPLA) and…
With the recent decisions of the EPO Administrative Council CA/D 2/10 and CA/D 12/10 of 26 October 2010, the provisions originally intended to expedite the examination proceedings before the EPO and to reduce the average time needed by the EPO for grant will be relaxed. One of these amendments will enter into force soon, i.e. on May 1, 2011.
On 13 December 2007, the last amendment of the European Patent convention (“EPC”) came into force. Among other aspects, the amendment introduced a new paragraph (paragraph 3) in Article 138 of the EPC, which reads as follows: “In proceedings before the competent court or authority relating to the validity of the European patent, the proprietor…
