Germany today ratified the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court (UPC). With the approval by Germany, the conditions for the entry into force of the Agreement have been created. The Unified Patent Court will start its work on June 1, 2023.
The Agreement’s entry into force will mark a new era for European innovation with the launch of the Unified Patent Court and the Unitary Patent.
Federal Minister of Justice in Germany Dr. Marco Buschmann stated:
“Today takes innovation protection in Europe to a new level. From June 1, unitary patent protection will be opened up in Europe, with disputes being decided in proceedings before the Unified Patent Court with direct effect for all participating member states. In this way, innovative companies will be able to effectively protect their inventions in the common market across borders in a timely manner. This strengthens the future viability and innovative power in Germany and Europe.”
In the future, the Unified Patent Court will have jurisdiction in a unified procedure for all participating EU member states on the infringement and validity of patents under the European Patent Convention as well as the new EU unitary patent. The court will initially decide patent disputes with direct effect for 17 states (Germany, France, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Sweden, Slovenia). Further EU member states may join the unitary patent protection in the future
First-instance chambers are established in the participating member states, in Germany at the locations Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Mannheim and Munich. The Court of Appeal has its seat in Luxembourg. The President of the Court of Appeal is Dr. Klaus Grabinski from Germany, and the President of the Court of First Instance is Ms. Florence Butin from France.