EU Commission outlines IP focus

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Gardens, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

EU Commission outlines IP focus

The head of the European Commission’s IP team has set out the EU’s priorities for 2014 in an interview with Managing IP

jorna-kerstin-400.jpg

Kerstin Jorna, director, Intellectual Property, DG Internal Market and Services, said that the Commission wants to close the legislative process on trade secrets and trade mark reform, take copyright reform further and oversee a period of intensive implementation of the unitary patent proposal.

“There’s a long list of things to be done on the unitary patent,” she said.

The Commission’s focus will be to ensure that the new patent will be cost effective for users and offer legal certainty. Other outstanding issues in the patent reform process include finalising the rules of procedure for the Unified Patent Court, appointing judges and deciding who can plead and where they can do it.

The Commission received more than 100 comments on the draft rules of procedure last year. It plans to hold a hearing in the first quarter of 2014 and for the Court’s preparatory committee to validate a provisional version of the rules.

The level of fees for obtaining a unitary patent is a controversial issue being considered by a special committee within the EPO. Although the Commission is only an observer on the member state-led body, Jorna described its role as “very active”.

The Commission wants fees to “make sense” for users, she added.

“If it is more expensive [than the current options for obtaining patent protection] then probably the people in charge of the budget department won’t bother. That is not a solution we want.”

She added that if the fees were too high for SMEs then they may opt to protect their IP with trade secrets or nothing at all.

But Jorna said she remained optimistic about the success of the new system, drawing parallels with the introduction of the European Patent system 40 years ago, where estimates of potential take-up were initially set very low.

“This is a long-term project.”

Many IP owners have suggested they may opt out of the new patent system, adopting a wait-and-see approach. But Jorna said this trend is starting to change, suggesting that companies want to be in it from the beginning rather than adapt to it later on.

“It’s a bit like swimming. When you learn at four it’s straightforward. When you try to do it at 40 it can be tricky.”

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

News of Singapore planning to streamline the licensing framework for foreign law firms and a partnership between Avanci and Xprize were also among the top talking points
In major recent developments, the court also ruled on another request concerning access to documents and appointed a new panel to the Court of Appeal
A new foundation in Chile is giving women in the IP community the mentorship, and visibility they’ve long lacked
The EUIPO is keen to stress the benefits of mediation as a means of resolving IP disputes, but do roadblocks remain?
Åsa Gustafson, global patent paralegal manager at Zacco, provides insight into the world of a paralegal, explains how she keeps abreast of legal developments, and reveals a passion for weaving
Alif Gultom and Andrew Diamond of Januar Jahja & Partners explain why Indonesia must adopt reforms against bad-faith filings and safeguard its trademark system for the future
In the third episode of a podcast series celebrating the tenth anniversary of IP Inclusive, we discuss the ‘Women in IP’ network and the current state of diversity within the profession
Practitioners, including two ex USPTO directors, say the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act could restore clarity and predictability to US patent law, though concerns remain
News of an alliance between two Malaysian law firms and the launch of a self-help video aimed at supporting IP professionals through menopause were also among the top talking points
Speakers at the EUIPO’s IP Mediation Conference discussed how lawyers can act in tandem with clients during mediation, and the importance of showing a united front
Gift this article