A Practitioner's Guide to the Unified Patent Court and Unitary Patent

This book provides practical and detailed account of all procedural aspects of the Unified Patent Court and Unitary Patent system.

The book also explains how the UPC works in the context of the wider European patent system, particularly the EPO and the UK. It considers how parties can use it to enforce or revoke European patents and the Unitary Patent, in particular:

- The procedures of the UPC from initiating proceedings to appeal, damages and costs hearings;
- Rules on competence, substantive law, jurisdiction, language and judges;
- The operation of the system alongside the national courts of the contracting countries, the European Patent Office opposition and appeal procedure, and parallel English Patents Court proceedings.

NEW TO THE 2ND EDITION: Additional chapters on the impact of the UPC and Unitary Patent on managing licences, and on confidentiality; coverage of the latest UPC guidance; references and case notes on every significant procedural case from the UPC divisions and the Court of Appeal; and coverage of every Rule of the Rules of Procedure.

The book is written by a team of patent experts with many years of experience in patent litigation in France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK, as well as hands-on experience of running cases in the UPC from its inception. It provides insights from national and UPC practice on the features above and identifies points of interpretation. A must read for private practitioners and in-house counsel.

Introduction

Part I: The Structure and Application of the New System
1. The Unitary Patent
2. The Opt-out and Transitional Period
3. Managing Licenses of European and Unitary Patents
4. Structure, Context and Competence
5. Making Orders and Decisions
6. Sources of Law
7. Language
8. UPC Jurisdiction
9. Parallel Proceedings in the Contracting Member State Courts and the UPC
10. Parallel Proceedings between the UPC, EPO, and England and Wales

Part II: Proceedings in the United Patent Court
11. Written Procedure: Infringement Actions
12. Written Procedure: Revocation Actions
13. Written Procedure: Declarations of Non-infringement and Actions against the EPO
14. Case Management and Interim Procedure
15. Oral Procedure, Final Decision and Early Termination
16. Preliminary Injunctions and Other Provisional Measures
17. Obtaining and Using Evidence
18. Confidentiality and Privilege
19. Appeal
20. Final Remedies and Costs
21. Service and Miscellaneous Matters
22. Court Fees

Annex A: Stays of Proceedings
Annex B: Agreement on a Unifi ed Patent Court of 19 February 2013 (UPCA)