rra79-shutterstock-com-brexit-
2 December 2016Patents

IP Summit 2016: Questions remain despite UK pledge on UPC

The UK government’s  recent announcement that it will give the green light for the Unified Patent Court (UPC) Agreement was welcomed yesterday at the IP Summit 2016.

A panel at the event, which is taking place in Brussels, applauded the move from the government.

Tim Frain, director, IP regulatory, legal and intellectual property, Nokia, said that it has been a “rollercoaster ride” from an industry perspective, adding that the fate of the UPC project had become very uncertain after the Brexit vote.

He said that the announcement, made on Monday, November 28, suggests that “the trajectory for the UPC project is now much clearer”.

However, Frain noted a number of questions that still remain unanswered.

“The question is still hanging over us: whether the UK can or would want to remain in the UPC after exiting the EU,” said Frain.

Also, the agreement doesn’t have express termination or transitional provisions, with Brexit shining a light on this gap, according to Frain.

He added that another question that arises, on the subject of the unitary patent, is “even if the UK remains in the court agreement, can we still remain part of the regulations [which established the unitary patent] and does it matter?”

Francesco Macchetta, IP director at diagnostic imaging business Bracco Imaging, thanked the government for bringing the system to “real life”, in his view.

He added that the agreement can live up to its promise, and that time will tell whether the system will become a rival of patent litigation in the US.

Frain said that he believes the court could become a rival, with “the centre of gravity moving to the UPC”, whether that’s a good or a bad thing.

The IP Summit ends today.

Already registered?

Login to your account

To request a FREE 2-week trial subscription, please signup.
NOTE - this can take up to 48hrs to be approved.

Two Weeks Free Trial

For multi-user price options, or to check if your company has an existing subscription that we can add you to for FREE, please email Adrian Tapping at atapping@newtonmedia.co.uk


More on this story

Patents
28 November 2016   The UK government has given the go-ahead to the Unified Patent Court (UPC) Agreement, in a move that could signal the direction of Brexit.