Unitary Patent & Unified Patent Court 2013

Description

"There should be a Unitary Patent, a Unified Patent Court: will they change everything for the better in the way you protect, manage, litigate, and exploit your IP in Europe?


""We will look at enhanced cooperation"" revealed Commissioner for Internal Market & Services Michel Barnier on 2 December 2010 in introduction of the 5th IP Summit (www.ipsummit.info), organized by Premier Cercle™ in Brussels. Still, the road to full implementation of the UP and the UPC isn’t exempt of risks and pitfalls.


What about compliance to existing regulations? Ratification of the UPC agreement by at least 13 of the 25 participating states? But it's not all, there’s also:


1. Tricky choices related to implementation, i.e. notably rules of procedures for the UPC;

2. Total costs v. ROI - in other terms, will it pay off for users? Will it live up to its promises and become a catalyst for innovation, growth and jobs?

3. Preparedness of key institutional players: PTOs of course, and judges. How will the training be organized? Will national rules have to be modified?

4. Willingness of right holders to use the new system massively, in a proper manner. Is it not where the most intricate difficulty lies?


As the new system doesn’t exist yet, it is not proven by definition, which for now points to a lot of uncertainties. When will the first cases be filed? Who will be among first users? On the other hand, will “opt-out” become the norm?"