The Unitary Patent and UPC: an important step closer

Another milestone has been reached in the progress of long-standing European patent reforms with the UK’s recent ratification of the UPC Agreement.  However, the project is now at a critical juncture:  time is running out for Germany to ratify (being the third Member State required to ratify in order for the new court to come into effect) before the UK leaves the EU.  If the problems in Germany over ratification are not resolved quickly, the whole project could stall completely unless some agreement is put in place.  This cannot be discounted; there does seem to be political will behind the project succeeding and industry is also in favour of it proceeding.  Our attached article, which appeared in this month’s PLC Magazine, assesses the expected timetable in light of these obstacles and considers what action patent owners should take at this time.