Call to Arms for UK Patent Litigators

If you are European Patent Attorney and hope to practice in the future before the Unified Patent Court, now

is the time to make sure that your qualifications will allow you to be entered on the list of representatives.

There is currently circulating covertly, a draft proposal for rules on the European Patent Litigation Certificate and other appropriate qualifications. As presently drafted any European Patent Attorney who has an LLM or a law degree will have the right to go on the list. I approve. Sadly my CPE didn't get me a degree, so I need to try and persuade Laura Starrs at the UK IPO and her team to suggest some appropriate changes. If you think you may be in a similar position get in touch with your professional body CIPA where Vicki Salmon is working on their submissions or the IPO directly.

Many Chartered Patent Agents are much miffed that other European countries do not recognise that we are lawyers. We have to accept that that battle was lost when the Court of Justice of the European Union decided only solicitors and barristers were lawyers from the UK and that was some time back when OHIM appeals became significant business. The UK government has not helped in all that time and I don't expect them too now.