One Step Nearer a Unified European Patent Litigation System

Originally published 30 March 2009

Keywords: patents, European Commission, Unified Patent Litigation System, Community patent, European Patent Litigation Agreement, EPLA, UPLS,

The European Commission has recommended to the European Council the negotiation and adoption of an agreement that would create a Unified Patent Litigation System ("UPLS"). If adopted, the UPLS would form part of a bundle of reforms to introduce a pan-European patent system in conjunction with a single Community patent (i.e. a single patent to cover the whole of the European Union, like the EU-wide rights  which have already been introduced for trade marks and designs). It would also create a court structure with jurisdiction concerning the infringement and validity of European patents and any future Community Patents.