EU Unitary Patent Update
Did you know that the European Patent Office (EPO), responsible for implementing the unitary patent system, is one of the largest European institutions, and that along with patent offices in China, Japan, Korea and the U.S., it is one of the largest patenting authorities in the world? But where does the EU unitary patent system stand, and what impact does it have for future legal and ip translation, as well as for people looking to patent their work in the future?
The History of the Unitary Patent System
In 2014, many of the participating EU member states worked on drafting and formalizing an agreement to ratify the Unitary Patent system. This system would create a more centralized system for handling patent applications in the member states. It would also impact the requirements for European patent translation.
Thirteen Member States – three of which are by default Germany, the UK and France – were required to ratify the agreement (also including the Unified Patent Court) before it could come into effect. While Belgium, Sweden and Denmark officially signed the agreement in June of 2014, with Germany in the process of finalizing it, on July 1st, Spain challenged the approval of the unitary patent system for the second time.
The case was heard by the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU), the court responsible for settling cases between European governments. Spain presented seven separate items to the court regarding the unitary patent system. The legality of the regulation was among the most prominent issues under discussion. The court ultimately ruled against Spain, declaring that there was no inconsistency with EU law.
As of November of the past year, 11 other members of the EU have ratified the system including Austria, France and Portugal to name a few. The systems are projected to take effect sometime early this year.
EPO & Unitary Advantages
According to the European Patent Office (EPO), the unitary patent system will improve the patent approval system among participating countries in several ways, including streamlining administrative costs, and allowing for a unified judicial system to better combat problems, such as counterfeiting, that affect the industry.
It is also set to decrease European patent translation costs. By filing a single application in one of the EPO’s three official languages, inventors can protect their inventions on the European market in all participating countries. It is estimated that as such, the new system will ultimately cut administrative costs by 70%.
European Patent Translation – Down to Three Languages?
The future of European patent translation services is changing. As previously agreed upon, the only human ip translations required for the unitary patent system are into one of three officially declared European patent languages as stated by the EPO: English, German, or French. However, the EPO will perform machine translation of patents into other European languages upon request – the EPO website provides free machine translation of patent text between English and 31 other languages for informational purposes i.e. for the benefit of the inventor.
For applicants with a residence or business in an EU member state that has an official language other than the three official languages, and who has obtained an EU unitary patent, a system of reimbursement will be introduced for the costs of translating their application into the EPO language.
Language Connections has years of experience translating IP patents in the life science industry. We translate for all official EU languages, including English, French, and German.
*This blog has been updated to more accurately reflect the current situation surrounding the Unitary Patent System.
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