UPC advice

The European patent with unitary effect, UP for short, is coming – and with it the Unified Patent Court (UPC). We’ll support you in all related matters and show you how you can stay innovative and capitalize on your IP rights at European level. You can also follow our UPC blog.

Should court proceedings concerning your existing EPs be heard before the UPC or, through an opt-out in a transitional period, continue to be heard before the established – in particular the German – courts? When should such an opt-out be declared? What role does the “sunrise period” before the launch of the UP and UPC play here?

Does the UP replace the splitting of an EP into national bundle patents? With the UP’s protective effect extending to a population of well over 300 million in the member states, the costs of maintaining it are substantially lower than before. Does this mean that in the future the UP will be in the same league as, for example, US, CN, and JP patents in terms of application strategy? Should you add bundle patents in the non-member states, e.g. United Kingdom, Spain, or Poland, to the UP? Should a UP be combined with a national German patent in parallel? What role is played by the central infringement and nullity proceedings before the UPC, which can be used to obtain judgments against patent infringers for all member states, but also to revoke the patent for all these states simultaneously? When are the decisions on the appropriate adaptation of patent application strategies due?

You might also be interested in

Hände auf Laptop-Tastatur, darüber eingeblendete digitale Icons wie Justizgebäude, Lupe und Dokumente – symbolisiert digitales Fallmanagement im juristischen Umfeld.
  • Dr. Matthias Rottmann

UPC Update - The new CMS is online

On July 8, the UPC has launched the first phase of its new CMS-rollout. Starting with limited functional scope, the new CMS is set to become fully operational in September.

Read more
Außenansicht des Europäischen Patentamts in München mit Flaggen der Mitgliedsstaaten bei sonnigem Wetter.
  • Dr. Natalie Kirchhofer & Dr. Hannah Jenke

G1/24: EPO’s Game-Changing Patent Claim Interpretation Ruling

EPO Moves Toward Harmonization with UPC and German Courts

Read more
Mensch mit Kopfhörern sieht sich auf einem Smartphone ein Fußballspiel im Livestream an.
  • Gottfried Schüll

EPO study finds technology standards secure economic growth

C&F: “Good times for standard essential patents”

Read more
  • Dr. Natalie Kirchhofer & Dr. Hannah Jenke

UPC Decision Sets Precedent for Life Sciences Patents

Local Division Düsseldorf Issues Landmark Ruling on Second Medical Use Claims in Sanofi v. Amgen

Read more