EPO Publishes Study on Unitary Patent Package
The Economic and Scientific Advisory Board of the European Patent Office (EPO) has published a study and report commissioned to provide economic analysis of the unitary patent (UP) and Unified Patent Court (UPC). The UP is a proposed new type of patent that would be valid in participating Member States of the European Union. Currently, patent applicants are obliged to apply for patents in each country separately. The significant potential benefits according to the report include the administrative simplification of patenting in Europe and the geographic extension of the patent protection.
Often cited concerns are the level of fees for the UP and the procedural costs of the UPC, both of which are yet to be determined. These will likely determine how the scheme is viewed on a day-to-day basis. However, the potential overall cost savings for a patentee appear to outweigh concerns raised about fees, as applicants are still likely to pay less than they would applying for patents in each separate jurisdiction. The EPO president expects the total administrative cost of filing and maintaining an average UP to come down by roughly 70 per cent compared to its current equivalent.
There are other concerns around the procedural uncertainties of the UPC and how current national courts’ procedures will be reflected in the functioning of the UPC. Once this is determined, it is hoped an immediate benefit of the UPC lies in avoiding multiple patent litigation in different European jurisdictions.
The process of consultation on the rules and procedures is ongoing and the effects of the UP and the UPC will only become clear as time goes on. It is argued that the success of the new UP depends largely on the EU’s capacity in the coming months to fix an appropriate level for fees and an appropriate procedure for the UPC.
Despite repeated lobbying by concerned parties such as the Law Society, the Law Library and IBEC, the Irish government is yet to seek to establish an Irish Division of the UPC. Failure to apply for a Divisional Court is an oversight and could in the long run prove costly to Ireland’s status as a smart economy.
