Ireland to hold UPC referendum in June, govt confirms

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

Ireland to hold UPC referendum in June, govt confirms

Ha'penny Bridge in Dublin
Dublin, which could host the next local division of the Unified Patent Court

The vote will be held alongside local and European elections, although the exact date has not been set

Ireland will hold a referendum on whether to join the Unified Patent Court system in June, its government confirmed yesterday, January 23.

The vote will be held on the same day as local and European elections, although an exact date has not yet been confirmed.

Ireland must pass a constitutional amendment in order to ratify its membership of the UPC, as joining the system entails a transfer of jurisdiction to an international court.

Constitutional amendments in Ireland can only be approved by referendum.

The government has already committed to opening a local division of the court in the capital city of Dublin if Ireland’s membership of the system is approved.

Business leaders had expressed frustration over a delay in organising the referendum, which will come a year after the court began hearing cases in June 2023.

Opposition party Sinn Féin has yet to take a public position on whether it will support the UPC.

Speaking to Managing IP, Michael Finn, partner at Bird & Bird in Dublin, said an Irish local division would be an attractive option to litigants from the common law tradition.

Ireland would be the only common law jurisdiction participating in the UPC. The UK, which operates a common law system, notably withdrew from the UPC in 2020.

“Many of the principles that have been meshed into UPC Rules of Procedure are common law principles.

“The judge appointed to the Irish division will be familiar with those and that will be attractive to multinationals coming from a common law background,” Finn said.

He added that he was confident the referendum would pass but added that he expects debate over some of the civil law relief measures available in the UPC.

“I haven’t seen any negative campaign around the UPC yet but there are some remedies in the UPC that we are not familiar with in common law jurisdictions.

“For example, saisie [seizure] orders could be served against companies based in Ireland.

“We are explaining that to clients but we’re also explaining the many benefits of the UPC,” he said.

Aidan Sweeney, head of enterprise and regulatory affairs at the Irish Business and Employers Confederation, said on social media that Ireland stood to “gain significantly” from joining the UPC.

“Ireland is uniquely positioned to establish itself on the international stage as a patent enforcement hotspot,” he said.

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

Attorneys explain why there are early signs that the US Supreme Court could rule in favour of ISP Cox in a copyright dispute
A swathe of UPC-related hires suggests firms are taking the forum seriously, as questions over the transitional stage begin
A win for Nintendo in China and King & Spalding hiring a prominent patent litigator were also among the top talking points
Rebecca Newman at Addleshaw Goddard, who live-reported on the seminal dispute, unpicks the trials and tribulations of the case and considers its impact
Attorneys predict how Lululemon’s trade dress and design patent suit against Costco could play out
Lawyers at Linklaters analyse some of the key UPC trends so far, and look ahead to life beyond the transition period
David Rodrigues, who previously worked at an IP boutique, said he may become more involved in transactional work at his new firm
Indian smartphone maker Lava must pay $2.3 million as a security deposit for past sales, as its dispute with Dolby over audio coding SEPs plays out
Powell Gilbert’s opening in Düsseldorf, complete with a new partner hire, continues this summer’s trend of UPC-related lateral movement
IP leaders at Brandsmiths and Bird & Bird, who were on opposing sides at the UK Supreme Court in Iconix v Dream Pairs, unpick the landmark case and its ramifications
Gift this article