In the May edition of IP Ezine we discussed the progress of the Unitary Patent System in Europe which has been pushed through in record time, after a gestation period of around 40 years, under the EU's "enhanced cooperation" procedure. Draft regulations for the creation of unitary patent protection and applicable translation arrangements are now expected to be voted on by the European Parliament next year.
Back in May there was no plan for enforcement because the CJEU had found that the European Patents Court Proposal was illegal under European law. However, since then a new litigation agreement outside the EU institutional framework ("the Unified Patent Court Agreement") has been proposed to operate between interested member states and is being pursued vigorously by the current Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
The proposal is in essence to develop a simplified, consistent and cost efficient centralised court system to enforce the Unitary Patent. It will be possible to obtain European wide injunctions and infringement damages and to revoke patents on a multi-state basis. The idea is to establish central, regional and local courts with a combination of presiding and specialized judges from the participating states. The proposal has moved at lightning speed in the last month with rumours that a very recent Ministerial Meeting (5 December 2011) would not only consider the compromise package negotiated by the Polish Presidency, but would determine the hot topic of the location of various levels of the Court as well as the proposed Arbitration and Mediation Centre. There was even a suggestion that the whole package would be concluded by 22 December 2011 and prior to this Presidency's conclusion.
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