Legal Updates

The Unified Patents Court (UPC) opened its doors on 1 June 2023 and is already having a significant impact on EPO practice. Less than a year after opening, the UPC Court of Appeal (CoA) rendered its decision in 10x Genomics vs. NanoString (UPC_CoA_335/2023), ruling on how claims should be interpreted under the European Patent Convention (EPC). The CoA’s position was at odds with the EPO’s “classical” approach. This inconsistency played an influential role in prompting the EPO to reconsider how c...

In the three years since it became operational, the UPC has established itself as a leading forum for pan-European patent litigation, with a number of decisions raising important questions regarding the full reach of the court’s so-called long-arm jurisdiction.  With that in mind, manufacturers based outside Europe must now give careful consideration to their operations within Europe. The way in which they organise their European sales, supply chains, regulatory functions and group companies may...

Now patent holders may be locked into the UPC system even prior to grant.   The UPC has jurisdiction over European patents that have not been opted out. But what about European patent applications? The UPC Court of Appeal (CoA) [UPC_CoA-90/2026] decided on this point last week, confirming the Paris Central Division’s (CD) [UPC_CFI_799/2026] findings that the UPC’s jurisdiction can extend to European patent applications provided the applications are granted under Article 97(1) EPC1 before the ...