EU Patent
| European Union regulation | |
| Text adopted under the Enhanced cooperation procedure | |
| Title | 1257/2012: Implementing enhanced cooperation in the area of the creation of unitary patent protection 1260/2012: Implementing enhanced cooperation in the area of the creation of unitary patent protection with regard to the applicable translation arrangements |
|---|---|
| Applicability | All current EU members, except Spain and Croatia. |
| Made by | European Parliament and Council |
| Made under | of the TFEU, and Council Decision 2011/167/EU authorising enhanced cooperation. |
| Journal reference | |
| History | |
| Date made | 17 December 2012 |
| Came into force | 20 January 2013 |
| Implementation date | Applies from the date the UPC Agreement enters into force |
| Pending legislation | |
The European patent with unitary effect (EPUE), more commonly known as the unitary patent, is a new type of European patent in advanced stage of adoption which would be valid in participating member states of the European Union. Unitary effect can be registered for a European patent upon grant, replacing validation of the European patent in the individual countries concerned. The unitary effect means a single renewal fee, a single ownership, a single object of property, a single court (the Unified Patent Court) and uniform protection—which means that revocation as well as infringement proceedings are to be decided for the unitary patent as a whole rather than for each country individually. Licensing is however to remain possible for part of the unitary territory.
Formal agreement on the two EU regulations that made the unitary patent possible through enhanced cooperation at EU level was reached between the European Council and European Parliament on 17 December 2012. The legality of the two regulations was however challenged by Spain and Italy, who filed in total four actions for annulment, two of which were rejected, and two of which are currently pending before the European Court of Justice. All EU member states except Spain and Croatia participate in the enhanced cooperation. Unitary effect of newly granted European patents can be requested, from the date the related Unified Patent Court Agreement enters into force for the first group of ratifiers, and will extend to those participating member states for which the UPC Agreement had entered into force upon the registration of unitary effect.
The negotiations which resulted in the unitary patent can be traced back to various initiatives dating to the 1970s. At different times, the project, or very similar projects, have been referred to as the "European Union patent" (the name used in the EU treaties, which serve as the legal basis for EU competency), "EU patent", "Community patent", "European Community Patent", "EC patent" and "COMPAT".
...
Wikipedia