The arrival of the unitary patent and the Unified Patent Court (UPC) represent the biggest changes in European patent law in a generation. Proprietors of European patents and pending European patent applications need to make important decisions about how to handle these changes in view of their effects on granted and pending patent rights.
The latest roadmap indicates that the legislation is expected to come into force on 1 June 2023, with a sunrise period beforehand providing an opportunity for early opt-out from the UPC.
Join Senior Associate, Dr. Serena White as she outlines throughout the webinar:
- What the law changes are and what they mean for Australian and New Zealand businesses and individuals with European patents and patent applications;
- The advantages and disadvantages;
- The benefits and risks; and
- What Australian and New Zealand businesses and individuals need to do to prepare
Access the webinar
How will the unitary patent and the Unified Patent Court affect my patent portfolio?
There are two separate issues for patent applicants and patentees to consider:
- The unitary patent: this is only relevant for patents which grant after the legislation comes into force.
- The Unified Patent Court: this affects pending applications AND has a retrospective impact upon European patents which have already been granted. Supplementary protection certificates (SPCs) for pharmaceutical inventions are also affected by the law changes. Assuming German ratification in February 2023, the 3-month sunrise period for opting out nationally validated European patents from the jurisdiction of the UPC is scheduled to begin on 1 March 2023.