Report of the Litigation Committee
Litigation Committee meetings
Since the last report, the Litigation Committee has not convened a full meeting. The LitCom Executive Group held meetings on 18 June 2024 and on 25 July 2024 via Zoom, with Chair Kim Finnilä, Secretary Triona Walshe and Vice-Chair Tilman Pfrang supported by Susanne Ullmann and Nicole van der Laan.
One item addressed the activities of the sub-committees. Information was provided on the UPC Sub-committee’s efforts to produce an article on file accessibility and a subsequent podcast, as well as an article on the service of documents in collaboration with the EU and International Litigation Sub-committee. The National Litigation Matters Sub-committee had posted a questionnaire on funding for patent litigation at the national level. Sub-committee members were requested to provide feedback and test the questionnaire
Updates on educational activities within the Inter-Com WG PEC-EPPC were provided, see below.
The next LitCom committee meeting is set for 11 October 2024 in Munich.
UPC related education
There are plans for a podcast on recent case law. The first episode will be recorded in September, including Bart van Wezenbeek and Tilman Pfrang. Additionally, a webinar on private prior use, a useful objection facing an infringement allegation, is scheduled for 24 September 2024, with speakers Jasper Werhahn and Andreas Kabisch. Another webinar on public prior use, a common topic in opposition and revocation cases, is scheduled for 27 September 2024, with speakers Tilman Pfrang and Julian Würmser. Another webinar, “UPC Revocation vs. EPO Opposition,” is planned for 15-16 October 2024, including speakers Elisabetta Papa, Bernard Ledeboer, and Tilman Pfrang, with Bart van Wezenbeek as moderator.
This work is undertaken by the Inter-Committee Working Group (PEC, EPPC, Litigation Committee).
UPC Administrative Committee (AC) and the UPC Registrar & IT Team
The 12th meeting of the UPC Administrative Committee was held on 19 July 2024. The accreditation request of POLIMI (Politecnico di Milano) for their EPLC course was approved, bringing the total number of institutions providing EPLC training to five. Additionally, it was announced that the Milan Central Division had opened, and judges had been appointed.
The President of the Court of Appeal (CoA), Klaus Grabinski, welcomed Romania as a new UPCA Contracting State. He noted that judicial developments in Europe are being closely watched by Japan, Korea, and the United States.
The UPC has entered a cooperation with the EPO regarding IT matters including the CMS.
A high uptake of Unitary Patents was reported by the EPO, with 24.3% of granted patents, totaling approximately 30,000 registered Unitary Patents. Around 30 requests were rejected due to various issues such as different claims, missed deadlines, and missing translations.
