Romania Joins The UPC On 1 September 2024

As previously reported, Romania will join the Unified Patent Court (UPC) on 1 September 2024. As a consequence, the jurisdiction of the UPC will, from that date, also cover Romania, an additional market of approximately 19 million consumers.

When the UPC first opened its doors on 1 June 2023, 17 European Union member states (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia and Sweden) ratified the Unified Patent Court Agreement. As the UPC has jurisdiction over European patent validations in its member states, it can rule on issues such as infringement and validity of these patents, and issue preliminary measures. The UPC has enjoyed great popularity and decisions and orders by the various divisions are keenly watched and generally well-reasoned. Legal grey areas that inevitably exist when any new system is introduced have thus far been swiftly addressed and