11th Apr 2022
Being part of the UPC means that a common court is used for patent litigation in UPC member states, whereas opting out of the UPC means that the relevant national courts in those states are used for patent litigation instead. As discussed below, there are benefits to opting in or opting out of the UPC – but the actions of third parties could solidify the choice of whether rights are enforced and defended before the UPC or national courts.
7th Apr 2022
The Administrative Committee of the UPC have published documents confirming, as expected, that UK-based European Patent Attorneys can directly represent clients before the UPC.
28th Mar 2022
In the coming year, those applying for patents in Europe are expected to be presented with a new opportunity. Since its formation in 1977, the European Patent Office (EPO) has acted as a central examining and granting authority; it provides a single portal to apply for patent protection in 38 member countries, and, if a patent is granted, the opportunity to then validate this protection as a bundle of national patent rights in each member country where protection is desired. These validated patents must then be renewed, enforced, and revoked at a national level.
23rd Mar 2022
Previously we discussed the ongoing developments to bring the Unified Patent Court (UPC) and Unitary Patent into effect. However, one piece of the puzzle that has not yet been solved is how Supplementary Protection Certificates (SPCs), which are national intellectual property rights that can extend patent protection for pharmaceutical and plant protection products for up to five years, will be provided for under the new Unified Patent system.
10th Mar 2022
DRAGONS’ DEN: If there’s one thing Patent Attorneys have in common with The Dragons it’s the value of protecting your IP:
2nd Mar 2022
There had been a notable rise in the number of domain name disputes filed with the World Intellectual Property Office’s Arbitration and Mediation Center under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy. The number of complaints filed hit an all time high in 2020 and from figures recently published by WIPO it appears that this upward trend is ongoing.
1st Mar 2022
The EPO Board of Appeal in cases T1513/17 and T2719/19 (both “Prolongation of survival of an allograft/Alexion”) has referred questions concerning priority entitlement for joint applicants to the Enlarged Board of Appeal, the EPO’s highest authority on questions of law.
11th Feb 2022
As of 5 February 2022, China has joined the Hague System. This long-awaited news means that from 5 May 2022 Hague System applicants will be able to seek design protection in China through filing a Hague System application, and that an applicant based in China can now take advantage of the benefits offered by the Hague System.