Breaking: UPC confirms names of 85 judges

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

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2026

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

Breaking: UPC confirms names of 85 judges

Europe viewed from space at night with city lights in European Union member states, global EU business and finance, satellite communication technology, 3D render of planet Earth, world map from NASA

Klaus Grabinski will lead as president of the Court of Appeal, with Florence Butin as president of the Court of First Instance

The organising committee for the Unified Patent Court confirmed the appointment of 85 judges today, October 19, marking a hugely significant step on the path to the court becoming a reality.

Managing IP reported yesterday that the list would be confirmed today, and the UPC committee didn't disappoint.

The court will be led by Germany’s Klaus Grabinski, who will be president of the Court of Appeal, and France’s Florence Butin, president of the Court of First Instance.

Of the 85 judges, 34 are legally qualified and 51 technically qualified.

The full list of appointed judges is below.

Court of Appeal

Klaus Grabinski

Françoise Barutel

Peter Blok

Emanuela Germano

Rian Kalden

Patricia Rombach

Ingeborg Simonsson

Court of First Instance, Paris:

Florence Butin

Paolo Catallozzi

Maximilian Haedicke

Tatyana Zhilova

Post to be filled before start of court’s operations

Court of First Instance, Munich

Mélanie Bessaud

Ulrike Voß

Post to be filled before start of court’s operations

Local division, Vienna:

Walter Schober

Local division, Brussels:

Samuel Granata

Local division, Copenhagen:

Post to be filled before start of court’s operation

Local division, Helsinki:

Petri Rinkinen

Local division, Paris:

Carine Gillet

Camille Lignieres

Local division, Düsseldorf:

Bérénice Thom

Ronny Thomas

Local division, Hamburg:

Sabine Klepsch

Stefan Schilling

Local division, Mannheim:

Holger Kircher

Peter Michael Tochtermann

Local division, Munich:

Tobias Pichlmaier

Matthias Zigann

Local division, Milan:

Pierluigi Perrotti

Alima Zana

Local division, The Hague:

Edger Brinkman

Margot Kokke

Local division, Lisbon:

Rute Lopes

Local division, Ljubljana:

Mojca Mlakar

Nordic-Baltic Regional Division

Kai Härmand

Stefan Johansson

Technically qualified judges

Biotechnology:

Arwed Andreas Burrichter

Eric Enderlin

Paolo Gerli

Krister Karlsson

András Kupecz

Roman Maksymiw

Cornelis Schüller

Chemistry and pharmaceuticals:

Michael Alt

Kirsikka Etuaho

Renaud Fulconis

John Meidahl Petresen

Stefanie Parchmann

Laure Sarlin

Casper Struve

Steen Wadskov-Hansen

Carola Wagner

Electricity:

Pascal Attali

Eric Augarde

Bertrand Cochet (to take up of duties as of Nov 1 2023)

Grégoire Desrousseaux

Alain Dumont

Dennis Kretschmann

Alessandro Sanchini

Andrea Scilletta

Simon Walker

Mechanical engineering:

Michel Abello

Uwe Ausfelder

Koen Callewaert

Giorgio Checcacci

Paolo Ernesto Crippa

Claus Elmeros

Frédéric Gaillarde

Bernard Christiaan Ledeboer

Elisabetta Papa

Martin Schmidt

Uwe Schwengelbeck

Max Tilmann

Marie-Paule Vandeberg

Patrice Vidon

Pascal Lucien Pierre Weber

Stefan Wilhelm

Physics:

Michael Feuchaus

Anders Max Hansson

Ulrike Keltsch

Gérard Myon

Dörte Otten-Dünnweber

Andrea Perronace

Christoph Dominik Schober

Patrik Rydman

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

New filing data suggests Germany's grip on UPC litigation remains strong, while Bardehle Pagenberg, Arnold Ruess, Hogan Lovells and Carpmaels notch up notable cases
In 27 years, KASS has expanded to seven countries in southeast Asia and is now eyeing further growth opportunities. Its CEO shares her perspective
Mine Güner discusses bridging law and business, taking the initiative, and why Taylor Swift helped put copyright on the map
Cindy Goh discusses why she launched Cheang & Ariff's IP department, the improving litigation environment in Malaysia and what to consider when using AI
Increased focus on adding patent litigation depth to the firm’s Dallas office was behind the boutique’s most recent hires
IPH's Canadian acquisitions are paying off on paper, but a couple of strong years may not be enough to show that the group's strategy has truly won over the market
Examiner statistics could help patent prosecution practitioners tailor strategies, turning an area of high variability into a potential competitive advantage
The England and Wales High Court’s ruling in Accord v Novartis may not rewrite the law on plausibility, but it does signal a pragmatic approach that could provide greater certainty for life sciences innovators
Firms with established sports relationships and specialised expertise are well positioned to capture the market’s expanded pool of IP work
Gunjan Paharia discusses developing RIA, an AI platform built to draw on decades of institutional knowledge, support junior lawyers, and reshape how legal teams work
Gift this article