ARTICLE · 10 MAY 2017

UPC To Become Operational In December 2017

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According to a new announcement on the Unified Patent Court's website, the Preparatory Committee is now working on an assumption that the court will become fully operational in December 2017.

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Alexander Robinson

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According to a new announcement on the Unified Patent Court's website, the Preparatory Committee is now working on an assumption that the court will become fully operational in December 2017.

Prior to this date there will be a "sunrise period" where various aspects of the new system are brought online before the Court officially opens. A particularly important aspect of the UPC system is that European Patents can be "opted out" of the UPC's jurisdiction. Opt-outs need to be registered with the Court, and the Court will begin accepting opt-out registrations during the sunrise period. The Committee anticipates that it should be possible to register opt-outs from September 2017 onwards.

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