Cross-border litigation over European patents
The Intellectual Property Rights Helpdesk has compiled a new briefing paper providing patent information for cases of cross-border litigation within the European Union. Written by the IPR-Helpdesk legal team, the paper can be found at: URL: http://www.ipr-helpdesk.org/updates(opens in new window) There is currently no uniform European patent, and no international jurisdiction for patent disputes whose competencies go beyond the territory of one state, although the situation in Europe may change in the near future. Instead a number of national patents exist separately, governed by a common patent procedure that covers up to 19 European countries. At present, if an international subject matter is submitted to a court for a decision, the court must decide whether it is internationally competent. When a European patent is infringed in different European states, particularly those governed by the European Patent Organisation, the patent suggests that the case expands to cover acts of infringement which go beyond the boundaries of the court. This paper attempts to provide help and clarification in this complex area, covering the impact of the objection of nullity in an infringement suit, the basic case of cross-border problems, and the cross-border impacts of legal actions in different contracting states. The IPR-Helpdesk is a free service providing help and legal advice on for Intellectual Property Rights in Europe. Funded by the European Commission, it contains an extensive database of more than 5,000 pages of IP related information.