Commercial IP expert Claire Smith and patent litigator Dom Adair spoke with specialist magazine MIP about how businesses should be preparing for the introduction of Europe’s new unitary patent system.

The article discusses the importance for businesses of making a quick decision about their patents and patent portfolios: on one side the uncertainty of a new court, on the other the appeal of a unified patent system.

Licensing expert Claire Smith told MIP that many companies haven’t included a UPC-related clause in their deals – and now is the time to review unless they want to be left as “piggy in the middle” trying to reach an agreement with the various parties. Claire suggests that patent owners, as a first step, should be reviewing their licence agreements and confirm what parties need to approve the decision to opt-out, especially in case of multiple licences to partners in different countries and sectors.

Patent litigation partner Dom Adair agrees, adding that in some cases there are multiple co-owners deciding together. With the new UPC rules saying that they all have to approve the opt-out, this is the right time to start these conversations.

You can read the full article on the Managing IP website, and you can learn how to make your deals UPC-ready on the Bristows UPC hub.