The Gatherer Volume 6

THE IMPACT OF BREXIT ON UK & EUROPEAN PATENTS

A s is widely known, the United Kingdom shocked the world – and themselves – by voting No on the question of whether to remain part of the European Union in the referendum held in June 2016. The UK parliament subsequently formalised the intention of the UK to leave the EU by invoking Article 50 of the Treaty on the European Union in March 2017. This means that the UK is due to leave the EU at midnight on 30 March 2019 Central European Time – BREXIT is actually happening. What does this mean for current pending applications & granted European patents and the protection provided in the UK? It is understandable then that there is much trepidation within the UK as to the legislative changes that Brexit will require, particularly in the field of intellectual property and in relation to patents more specifically – not least in terms of what Brexit will mean for the European Unitary Patent and Unitary patent courts which have been in negotiations since 17 December 2012. The good news for patent applicants and practitioners is that much of the current framework of intellectual property law will remain unchanged following the UK’s departure from the EU. International intellectual property agreements to which the UK is a party, including, for example, the Paris Convention and the TRIPS Agreement, exist outside of the EU and so will be unaffected by Brexit. Likewise, existing relationships between the UK and the European Patent Office are not a function of the EU and so will also remain unchanged after Brexit. The European Patent Organisation provides one of the primary routes for patent applicants to file applications in Europe, typically with the assistance of European patent agents based across Europe, including in the UK. The EPO currently has 38 contracting states, ten more than the total number of members of the EU, and includes non- EU countries such as Norway, Switzerland and Turkey. The EPO is separate to the EU and accordingly will not be affected by Brexit.

“ The Office underlines that the outcome of the referendum has no consequence on the membership of the UK to the European Patent Organisation, nor on the effect of the European Patents in the UK. Concerning the Unitary Patent and the Unified Patent Court, the Office expects that the UK and the participating Member States will find a solution as soon as possible which will allow a full implementation of these so-long awaited achievements. ” Benoît Battistelli President of the European Patent Organisation

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