The EU patent package establishing a Unitary Patent (UP) providing EU-wide patent coverage and a Unified Patent Court (UPC) to enforce such patents entered into force on 1 June 2023. Strategic decisions in relation to existing and future EP patents and applications may continue to be made now that the EU patent package has been implemented.
All applicants, including those based outside the EU, can make use of the Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court systems to obtain and enforce patent protection in the participating EU countries. There are no changes to the process of obtaining a European patent via the European patent office (EPO). A UP will be obtained from the EPO after the grant of the European patent.
Although the UK is no longer part of the UP/UPC project, the UK continues to be a member of the European patent system through the EPO. The European patent attorneys at Appleyard Lees are able to represent all clients who use the UP/UPC system.
There are the following key strategic decisions which need to be made by all proprietors of European patents and European patent applications:
Please see our FAQs on the Unified Patent Court and FAQs on the Unitary Patent for more information or get in touch with one of the members our specialist team.
The EU patent package establishing a Unitary Patent (UP) providing EU-wide patent coverage and a Unified Patent Court (UPC) to enforce such patents entered into force on 1 June 2023, and our clients are deciding whether or not to opt out their existing European patents from the jurisdiction of the UPC.
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In this episode, Appleyard Lees patent attorneys and partners Howard Read and Adam Tindall In this episode, partners and patent attorneys Adam Tindall and Howard Read discuss the decisions that European patent owners will need to make with regard to their existing patent portfolios and the UP/UPC.
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With 1 June 2023 being the start date of the Unitary Patent system, applicants achieving allowance of their European patent applications in the coming months may wish to delay grant so as to obtain a Unitary Patent (UP).
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The Unitary Patent (UP) and the Unified Patent Court (UPC) will enter into force on 1 June 2023, when the UPC Agreement (UPCA) is planned to enter into force. These new systems will centralise patent protection and enforcement within many EU countries.
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Partner
MA (Hons), Mathematics; Masters, Computer Science, CPA, EPA
Julia has worked in the patent profession in the Cambridge area for over twenty years and in January 2017 she opened our Cambridge office. She oversees the patent portfolios for a wide variety of direct clients. Julia’s mathematics backgr…
Principal Associate
MA(Cantab) PhD MInstP CPhys CPA EPA
Terry has an MA in Natural Sciences from Cambridge and a PhD in semiconductor physics. Working in private practice since 2007, he was a colloid/polymer/nanotechnology research scientist with Unilever for almost 20 years before joining their…
