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Each year on 26 April, professionals from all over the world join forces to mark World IP Day, a day that aims to celebrate innovation and the role that intellectual property plays in protecting valuable ideas.

Although the effects of Brexit are being felt across the UK, the European Patent Office is not an EU institution, meaning that our attorneys here at Potter Clarkson will be able to continue to represent their domestic and overseas clients there after Brexit.

After many years of doubts and uncertainty, the Unified Patent Court (UPC) has now entered the Provisional Application Period (PAP) and is expected to be operational from April 2023.

All European patents with unitary effect (that is, Unitary Patents) must use the UPC for infringement or invalidity proceedings. This is not the case for European patents that are validated in a participating Member State, whether granted before or after the UPC comes into force.

The European Patent with unitary effect, or Unitary Patent (UP), is a single right that covers all of the participating Member States of the European Union. The new Unified Patent Court (UPC) will handle enforcement of a Unitary Patent throughout the participating Member States.