Patent attorneys welcome EU Parliament’s controversial proposal for a single language Community patent

Published: 14 July 2006
By: Ted Blake

At a hearing on future patent policy in Europe held by the EU Commission on Wednesday, 12 July, the Community Patent, which had been written off by many, once again raised its head, perhaps for the last time.

At the hearing MEP Giuseppe Gargani revealed a controversial solution proposed by the European Parliamentary Committee examining the Community Patent. The Committee suggested a single language Community Patent, the language being English. Gwilym Roberts, who attended the consultation on behalf of The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) said

'Many users of the system have observed that multiple translations are simply not necessary and that the cost outweighs the benefits of unitary protection. If those users are right then this solution put forward by the European Parliament will provide a useful and extremely cost-effective route to pan-European patent protection. It would also be in line with the Commission’s goal of setting up a world-leading intellectual property rights regime across the EU. However, the proposal is likely to meet with significant resistance both from national governments and from service providers who feel that translation of the Community Patent is a necessity.'

Background

The hearing formed part of a consultation process by the Internal Market and Services Directorate of the European Commission which started back in January with a questionnaire seeking the views of stakeholders on an effective IPR system in the EU. The consultation addressed various issues:

• What should the basic principles of the patent system be?
• Is the Community Patent (a single unitary EU patent which can be enforced across the EU by a single court) a priority for the EU?
• Would alternative or complementary schemes such as the European Patent Litigation Agreement (EPLA) be preferable?
• How important is harmonisation of national patent systems?

Viewed by some as a final, doomed effort by Commissioner McCreevy to push through the troubled Community Patent proposal, observers have been pleasantly surprised by the strength of the response – more than 2,500 written replies were received from small to medium enterprises, lawyer organizations and governmental organizations. The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) was one of those respondents, stressing in its comments the need for a well-managed patent granting system and for speedy resolution of the language problem bedeviling the various initiatives to improve the patent system in Europe.

A Patent Attorney (formerly known as a patent agent) has qualified by experience and examination for entry of his or her name on the Register of Patent Agents. A patent attorney is entitled to deal with related areas of law such as designs, copyright and trade marks as well as patents. The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) is the professional body representing Patent Attorneys in the UK. CIPA was founded in 1882 and incorporated by Royal Charter in 1891. The majority of patent applications in the UK and Europe are submitted by Patent Attorneys on behalf of clients. Entry on the Register of Patent Agents provides patent attorneys with the right to conduct litigation and to act as advocates in the Patents County Court. Fellows of CIPA can also acquire an additional qualification (Litigator’s Certificate) entitling them also to conduct litigation in the Chancery Division of the High Court (including the Patents Court) and to conduct appeals from the Patents County Court, the County Court and the Chancery Division of the High Court in respect of Intellectual Property litigation.