A Practitioner S Guide To European Patent Law

"This new edition is a comprehensive and practical guide to European patent law - a 'ius commune'. The book highlights the areas of consistency and difference between the most influential European patent law jurisdictions: the European Patent Office, England and Wales, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. The book also draws insights from further afield, with contributions from other, very active, patent jurisdictions, including Belgium, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, and Switzerland. Uniquely, the book addresses European patent law by subject matter area, assessing the key national and EPO approaches together rather than nation by nation. Each chapter outlines the common ground between the national approaches and provides a guide for the possible application of European patent law in national courts and the UPC in the future. In addition to featuring content on new countries, the second edition includes new chapters dedicated to the substantive aspects of FRAND, declarations, and evidence. There is also an expanded commentary on construction, including common terms used in patent claims. A must-read for anyone working in the field of European patent law."--

A new patent right for Europe (the European Patent with Unitary Effect) and a new European enforcement and invalidation regime (the Unified Patent Court) are expected to come into operation soon, potentially as early as 2015. Existing patents granted by the European Patent Office (EPO), as well as those granted in the future, will automatically come under the jurisdiction of the new Court, unless opt-out rights are exercised. These measures represent one of the most complex and ambitious legal reforms in the field of European intellectual property since the creation of the EPO in 1977. For applicants and proprietors used to the current European system of national patents and national courts, the new system will present both opportunities and challenges in developing, maintaining and leveraging a cost-effective patent portfolio. For manufacturers, distributors and end-users, the new system will subject their activities to the jurisdiction of a new court, with unique and possibly unfamiliar powers and procedures. Decisions must therefore be made as to how best to take advantage of the possibilities afforded by the new system. Applicants and proprietors are already asking themselves questions such as: Should I start to register European patents as European Patents with Unitary Effect when they become available, or should I continue with national validation? For which European patents and applications should I make use of the opt-out to keep litigation in the national courts? Should I consider reverting to national filings instead of using the EPO? How will the new Unified Patent Court be structured, and how will it work? What choices will I have in future as to where to litigate – should I choose a national court or the UPC to enforce or invalidate a European patent? This Handbook provides both guidance for the strategic decisions which will have to be taken and a detailed reference manual to the law and practice of the new system.

A Practitioner's Guide to the Unified Patent Court and Unitary Patent provides practical and detailed advice on all aspects of the system for those using it. The book explains how the UPC system works in the context of the wider European patent system, including the UK, and how parties can use it to enforce or revoke European patents and the Unitary Patent, in particular: - The procedures of the UPC from initiating proceedings to appeal, damages and costs hearings; - Rules on competence, substantive law, jurisdiction, language and judges; - The operation of the system alongside the national courts of the contracting countries, the European Patent Office opposition and appeal procedure, and parallel English Patents Court proceedings. The book is written for private practitioners and in-house counsel by a team of patent experts with many years of experience in patent litigation in France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK. It provides insights from national approaches to the features above and gives answers to common problems.

Written by a team of lawyers with long-standing experience in patent litigation in Europe, this book is a comprehensive and practical guide to European patent law, highlighting the areas of consistency and difference between the most influential European patent law jurisdictions: the European Patent Office (EPO), England & Wales, France, Germany and the Netherlands. It is frequently the case that the decisions and approaches of these courts are cited by European patent lawyers of all jurisdictions when submitting arguments in their own national courts. The book is therefore intended to provide a guide to patent lawyers acting in the national European courts today. The book also looks to the future, by addressing all the areas of patent law for which the proposed Unified Patent Court (UPC) will need to establish a common approach. Uniquely, the book addresses European patent law by subject matter area, assessing the key national and EPO approaches together rather than in nation-by-nation chapters; and provides an outline in each chapter of the common ground between the national approaches, as a guide for the possible application of European patent law in the UPC.

A new patent right for Europe (the European Patent with Unitary Effect) and a new European enforcement and invalidation regime (the Unified Patent Court) are expected to come into operation soon, potentially as early as 2015. Existing patents granted by the European Patent Office (EPO), as well as those granted in the future, will automatically come under the jurisdiction of the new Court, unless opt-out rights are exercised. These measures represent one of the most complex and ambitious legal reforms in the field of European intellectual property since the creation of the EPO in 1977. For applicants and proprietors used to the current European system of national patents and national courts, the new system will present both opportunities and challenges in developing, maintaining and leveraging a cost-effective patent portfolio. For manufacturers, distributors and end-users, the new system will subject their activities to the jurisdiction of a new court, with unique and possibly unfamiliar powers and procedures. Decisions must therefore be made as to how best to take advantage of the possibilities afforded by the new system. Applicants and proprietors are already asking themselves questions such as: Should I start to register European patents as European Patents with Unitary Effect when they become available, or should I continue with national validation? For which European patents and applications should I make use of the opt-out to keep litigation in the national courts? Should I consider reverting to national filings instead of using the EPO? How will the new Unified Patent Court be structured, and how will it work? What choices will I have in future as to where to litigate - should I choose a national court or the UPC to enforce or invalidate a European patent? This Handbook provides both guidance for the strategic decisions which will have to be taken and a detailed reference manual to the law and practice of the new system.

This text provides an analysis of European patent law and procedure (including practice under the PCT) and examines the provisions and case-law of the European Patent Convention, the Patent Law Treaty, and Community Patent.

Far more than a revised update, this new edition of a well-received guide to US patent law is twice as valuable to European patent practitioners as the previous edition. It is virtually a brand new book. The author, drawing on her recent years at a US firm, has augmented each chapter with practical information – including lines of argumentation to overcome obviousness rejections – and added new chapters, as well as much more detail on petitions and appeals, post-grant proceedings, and litigation. The new edition tells European practitioners not just about the framework of US patent law, but how it is applied. No other such book exists. With an overview of options at each stage of US patent prosecution and enforcement – with particular emphasis on its differences from the EPO system – the new edition details the available courses of action for all the procedural scenarios a European patent attorney is likely to encounter. The coverage is loaded with practical guidance on such aspects of US patent law and procedure as the following: · drafting applications and filing them at the US Patent Office; · applying provisions of the America Invents Act of 2011; · possible responses to a Final Office Action; · costs, fees, and time periods for various procedural actions; · using the US Manual of Patent Examination Procedure (MPEP); · declarations, oaths, and affidavits; · the Quick Path Information Disclosure Statement (QPIDS); · submissions on patentability by third parties; and · supplemental replies during examination proceedings. Every step in the process is described and directly compared as it operates under both the European Patent Convention (EPC) and US patent law. Any practitioner who has unsuccessfully tried to pursue in the US claims that were granted in the EPO will gain a new understanding of the reasons why – and what to do about it. In this highly practical, one-of-a-kind book, European patent professionals will find, detail by detail, exactly what is required at every stage of patent proceedings in the US. There is no other available source of such instantly accessible information for European patent lawyers, in-house counsel and paralegals, or EPC or national patent office officials, to all of whom this book will be of immeasurable value and usefulness. Intellectual property law academics and students will also benefit from the book’s comparative approach.

A User's Guide to Patents, Fifth Edition provides guidance on the areas of European and UK patent law and procedure that are most important in day-to-day practice. This new edition sets out how patents can be obtained, exploited and enforced and addresses wider public policy aspects of patents and their economic significance, as well as past and likely future trends that affect legal practitioners. It is essential reading for IP practitioners, solicitors and barristers, patent attorneys, in-house lawyers, management executives and inventors. Unique selling points: Explains how patents can be exploited and enforced by reference to the most recent UK and EPO case law Identifies and discusses the different patent law issues that can arise in specific industrial sectors Full tabulation of all English patent validity and infringement decisions given after full trial since 1997 Addresses wider public policy aspects of patents and their economic significance, as well as past and likely future trends in the field, both in Europe and internationally The following relevant developments are included: The new UK law as to infringement by equivalents following Actavis v Lilly (UKSC 2017) The degree to which new types of plant, produced by using certain modern biotechnological techniques, can be patented in the light of the exclusion for 'products obtained by essentially biological processes' and the ongoing controversy as to this between the EPO, the EPO Boards of Appeal and the EU The developing case law in the UK and the EPO on plausibility in the context of insufficiency and obviousness The Unjustified Threats Act 2017 and other procedural developments, such as those involving Arrow type declarations of obviousness Developments in standards related patent litigation, as in Unwired Planet v Huawei (Patents Court 2017, CA 2018)