Year 2025 is off to a flying start in terms of European decisions with a strong strategic impact. In less than a month, the UPC (Düsseldorf Local Division - UPC_CFI_355/2023), on the one hand, and the CJEU (C-339/22 - BSH v Electrolux) on the other have, both sought to strengthen European judicial power.
In details? They have stated that the European courts may judge acts of infringement committed by Europeans outside of Europe, for example in the United Kingdom or in Turkey.
What could be the consequences for patent stakeholders? They could be highly significant!
Provided that the alleged infringer is European, all the proceedings relating to the infringement can be ‘centralised' in a single European court, even if some of the acts were committed outside Europe. As a result, there is greater predictability for the parties involved and, above all, a drastic reduction in costs.
Caution, however! The decision of the Düsseldorf Local Division may yet be overturned by the UPC Court of Appeal: there is therefore no guarantee that the final position of the UPC will be in line with this initial opinion. Moreover, these decisions have not resolved all the problems associated with such ‘extraterritorial' power. Lastly, they have confirmed that only a State (European or otherwise) has the sovereign power to completely invalidate a patent.
Nevertheless, the fact that these two decisions were published at the same time could be seen as a promising sign in favour of increased use of the European courts. In this respect, the Regimbeau teams will always be at your side to help you develop the best possible overall strategy at an international level.
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