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UPファミリーが成長を開始！ルーマニアがUPCに加盟

2024年9月1日にルーマニアはUPCの18番目の加盟国となります。統一特許裁判所に関する協定（UPCA）の批准が2024年5月31日に署名されました

Comment on UPC Court Decision of May 6, 2024

Before the Paris Local Division, in a case where the defendant had forced an intervener into the proceedings pursuant to Rule 316A RoP (forced intervention), the intervener has obtained a period of one month for filing its Application to Intervene as well as for filing its Statement in Intervention. Contrary to Rule 316.2 RoP, which mentions a “further period” for filing the Statement in Intervention, the Court did not set any such further period.

PRÜFER & PARTNER is ranked again in “The Legal 500” Germany and EMEA 2024

PRÜFER & PARTNER is ranked again in “The Legal 500” Germany and EMEA 2024.

UPCから見たクレーム解釈、事実の開示と立証の責任 – UPC_CoA_335/2023

UPCの最初の判決が下された。クレーム解釈、事実の開示と立証の責任、さらに進歩性の検討など、多くの議論がなされている問題に関するUPCの立場を知ることは、エキサイティングなことである。

Fee increase of the European Patent Office as of 1 April 2024

The European Patent Office will increase most of its fees by an average of around 5% as of 1 April 2024. The fee increase will be significantly higher for the 3rd and 4th renewal fees, which will rise by almost 30%.

Comparison of opposition proceedings at the EPO and revocation actions at the UPC – advantages and disadvantages

Since the introduction of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) in June 2023, a new system for central attacking the validity of and thereby to nullify a European Patent has been introduced. If a European patent of concern is an EU Unitary Patent, or if a classically validated European patent was not opted out from the competence of the UPC, a central revocation action under the UPC now exists in parallel to an opposition before the European Patent Office (EPO). Therefore, the question arises: what are the pros and cons of challenging the validity either before the EPO or before the UPC? The present report provides some guidance and discusses the main advantages and disadvantages of each system – which eventually is a matter of strategic considerations whether and which advantage may prevail – be it costs, timing, speed of proceedings, and possibly other issues.

52 years of consistency and still fit for the future – Prüfer und Partner welcomes the next generation of partners

With Dr. Susanne Sonnenhauser and Dr. Christian Gärtner, two very experienced colleagues from the Prüfer und Partner team are joining the management.

Recent earthquake in Japan

We were deeply shocked to learn of the devastating earthquake in Japan and would like to express our sincere condolences to the victims of this earthquake. In these difficult times, we would like to express our deepest sympathy to you and your fellow human beings.

Abolition of the 10-day notification fiction at the European Patent Office

In view of the digital age, in which documents will only be served electronically in the future, the European Patent Office will abolish its so-called 10-day fiction of service, which previously governed the calculation of time limits, as of November 1, 2023.

Dr Dorothea Hofer has obtained the European Patent Litigation Certificate

We are delighted to announce that our managing partner Dr. Dorothea Hofer has obtained the European Patent Litigation Certificate issued by the University of Maastricht in cooperation with the Academy of European Law (ERA) in Trier. This includes an extensive practical and theoretical training in the law underlying the Unified Patent Court (#UPC) and related fields of European law so that she is well prepared for representing clients in all proceedings before the Unified Patent Court.