The First Unitary Patents Are Getting Closer to Publication

Successfully launched on 1 June, the entry into force of the Unitary Patent system for 17 EU Member States was commemorated through a series of events held in Luxembourg (the seat of the Court of Appeal of the UPC), Munich (the headquarters of the European Patent Office), and Paris (the seat of the Court of First Instance of the UPC).

European Patent Bulletin which contains bibliographic data, as well as data concerning the legal status of European patent applications, for the first time includes data on European patents with request for unitary effect following the entry into operation of the Unitary Patent system on 1 June. 

In the next Bulletin issue, details on 600 patents with similar requests are listed and will be published as granted. By the end of May, the EPO had received 800 requests for unitary effect, as well as 4 500 requests for deferred publication of the grant of the European patent, allowing those patents to request unitary effect in June and early July.