Breaking: UPC chief urges EU to rethink SEP plan

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

Breaking: UPC chief urges EU to rethink SEP plan

KerstinJorna.jpg
Kerstin Jorna, head of DG Grow, speaking at the UPC inauguration in Luxembourg today

Klaus Grabinski told delegates at a UPC inauguration event that the proposed SEP regulation would limit access to justice

The most senior judge of the Unified Patent Court has sharply criticised the European Commission’s draft standard-essential patent reforms.

Klaus Grabinski, chief judge of the UPC Court of Appeal, said he feared the draft SEP regulation, published last month, was not currently compliant with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.

Speaking at the formal inauguration of the UPC at the Hémicycle in Luxembourg today, May 30 – which Managing IP is attending – Grabinski said he felt obliged to comment on the plan.

The German judge said he was concerned that SEP owners would have to register their patents at the EUIPO before they could bring an infringement action at the UPC.

“I fully support the commission’s aim to enhance transparency, but access to justice is a core fundamental right,” he said.

Grabinski questioned why SEP owners should not be able to bring infringement actions in the EU while they could in the UK and China.

Under the commission’s draft regulation, patent owners would have to register their SEPs at the EUIPO, which would carry out essentiality checks and determine fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) royalties.

They would be unable to bring infringement actions for those patents until the end of that process, which could take up to nine months.

But SEP owners would still be able to seek “provisional injunctions of a financial nature” while the EUIPO process was ongoing.

SEP owners had seen the UPC as an attractive option, mainly thanks to the prospect of Europe-wide injunctions.

But it’s unclear what role the new court will play in the future of global SEP litigation if the commission’s plan is realised.

“I have no doubt that the regulation will be fully compliant with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights after it has gone through the [full] legislative process,” Grabinski added.

Kerstin Jorna, head of DG Grow – the EU body that drew up the proposal – also gave a speech but did not comment on Grabinski’s remarks.

Jorna spoke instead about the importance of intellectual property to the EU single market and encouraged all member states to join the unitary patent system.

The UPC will open on Thursday, June 1.

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

The Bar Council of India’s warning to Dentons Link Legal and CMS IndusLaw shows why foreign firms are right to worry about India’s legal market
News of a trade secrets leak involving TSMC and an action in Japan against AI startup Perplexity were also among the top talking points
Rothwell Figg partner Leo Loughlin discusses the importance of pro bono work, and why ‘For the Kids’ should not be monopolised for trademark purposes
A new consultancy firm, set up by a former Warner Bros and Netflix lawyer, aims to resolve tensions between AI developers and the creative industries
Raúl Rubio, partner at Pérez-Llorca, outlines the firm’s AI initiatives and says solutions for law firms have yet to reach the required level of sophistication
MBIP principals Andy Mukherji and Ellen Reid discuss the firm’s combination with Jones Tulloch and reveal why younger firms stand to gain from AI demand
IP and commercial lawyers help ITV Studios acquire majority stake in Spanish production company Plano a Plano
The newly merged firm, formally announced on August 4, will have a combined revenue of around $3 billion and 40 IP partners
Managing IP will help mark IP Inclusive’s 10th anniversary by co-hosting a new podcast series covering diversity, equity, and inclusion within the IP profession
Tim Gilman, who joined Kasowitz alongside three other partners, says he is excited to be part of the firm’s ‘elite’ litigation team
Gift this article