Direct And Contributory Infringement At The UPC

The Unified Patent Court Agreement (UPCA) includes provisions defining the acts which a third party can be prevented from performing in respect of a patent. These provisions cover both 'direct' infringement of the patent (Art. 25 UPCA: "Right to prevent the direct use of the invention") and 'indirect' infringement (Art. 26 UPCA: "Right to prevent the indirect use of the invention").

Direct infringement

Art. 25 UPCA provides that a third party not having the proprietor's consent may be prevented from:

1. making, offering, placing on the market or using a product which is the subject-matter of the patent, or importing or storing the product for those purposes;
2. using a process which is the subject-matter of the patent or, where the third party knows, or should have known, that the use of the process is prohibited without the consent of the patent proprietor, offering the process for use within the territory of the Contracting Member States in which that patent