17 November
2022
Photo by Johan Liénard
Today, the EPO
and the Unified Patent Court (UPC) signed an agreement on the exchange of data
between the two institutions. The agreement provides the legal basis for facilitating
the exchange of data between the EPO’s European Patent Register and the UPC’s
Register, as well as for possible operational support from the EPO for the
UPC’s training framework.
EPO President
António Campinos and President of the UPC’s Court of Appeal Klaus Grabinski
signed the agreement on the fringes of a high-level conference in Brussels dedicated
to the Unitary Patent system and jointly organised by the Belgian government,
the EPO and the European Commission.
The agreement
will be an important element in establishing the UPC’s user-friendly case management system.
Mr Campinos said: “The EPO
is proud to support the UPC in establishing a truly IT-driven, unified patent
judiciary.” Mr Grabinski stated: “The UPC is pleased to cooperate with the EPO
in the necessary exchange of register data and in the training for UPC judges.”
The UPC is a dedicated
court for the enforcement of both “classic” European patents and Unitary Patents.
It will hear cases related to infringement and the validity of the patents
granted by the EPO. Today’s agreement will take effect with the entry into
operation of the UPC Agreement, which is expected as of 1 April 2023.
