Market globalisation and electronic commerce are pushing patent disputes beyond country boundaries and landing them, sometimes contemporaneously, in multiple countries with varying legal systems and consequent varying results. Patent owners and alleged infringers face a complicated labyrinth when mapping out a global strategy for IP litigation.
Although patent enforcement remains national in nature, business considerations often incline to global dispute resolution, particularly when they encounter the same competitors in multiple countries. It is important to consider, therefore, that the result in the first suit brought often has a large impact on the overall global effort. Legally, of course, that first result has no bearing on later suits in different countries. But in practice, business managers seek certainty, and the outcome of litigation in one jurisdiction often influences settlement negotiations in other jurisdictions.
An early win, therefore, is crucial, whether for the patentee or the alleged infringer. In the Global IP...