Patents

Welcome to the home of Patents on Law-Now.

IP is key to obtaining a competitive advantage for any business. Here, you will find patent related articles written by the CMS patent team.

The articles draw upon our experience of advising some of the world’s most significant technology and life science companies for whom strong IP, and a clear IP strategy, is essential. Lawyers from the full service IP team deliver Law-Now commentary and analysis and you can read about UPC, issues around patent drafting and prosecutions, SPC applications, oppositions and appeals before the European Patent Office, and strategic management considerations.

Recent Articles

  •  
    08.03.2023
    Europe

    Out with the old, in with the new? Pro­ced­ur­al fea­tures of the Uni­fied Pat­ent Court

    In our previous article, we looked at the current European system of patent prosecution and enforcement and highlighted some of the key changes that will be coming with the new Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court (UPC) once the system is operational from 1 June 2023.In this part two, we seek to touch on some of the interesting procedural features of the UPC. These features and their respective benefits (or limitations) may influence a patentee’s decision to opt in or out of the regime. Understanding the procedural nuances of the UPC will be critical not only for patentees but also defendants...
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  •  
    22.02.2023
    Europe

    Out with the old, in with the new? Com­par­ing the ex­ist­ing European Pat­ent sys­tem with the new Unit­ary Pat­ent and Uni­fied Pat­ent Court

    In this first of three articles, we compare the current European system of patent prosecution and enforcement with the new Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court which will come into effect on 1 June 2023.  Part two will highlight the procedural features of the UPC, and part three will discuss strategic considerations for opting out of the UPC system.  Please contact a member of the CMS team if you are interested in discussing any of these topics in greater detail.Under the current European Patent regime, a patent application granted by the EPO gives rise to a bundle of up to 39 national...
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  •  
    22.02.2023
    Europe

    Uni­fied Pat­ent Court (UPC): RE­VIEW, RE­ACT, RE­CORD

    The unified patent court (UPC) is coming and will allow the enforcement of patents across several European jurisdictions in a single court proceeding. This sophisticated new system requires some updates to the strategies of all companies with innovative activities operating in Europe. Indeed, the reform will deeply impact all areas of patent law.Introduction It was announced on Friday 17 February 2023 that Germany has deposited its ratification of the UPC Agreement. This has started the formal countdown to the start of the sunrise period on 1 March 2023 and to the opening of the unified patent...
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  •  
    21.02.2023
    Europe

    Sun­rise peri­od of the Uni­fied Pat­ent Court to be­gin 1 March

    After the final version of the UPC Rules of Procedure had been adopted and the judges of the UPC had been selected and appointed, the start of the Sunrise Period, originally planned for 1 January 2023, was postponed to 1 March 2023.Reasons for the postponement of the start of the Sunrise PeriodAccording to an "Implementation Roadmap" published on 6 October 2022, the Sunrise Period was originally to start on 1 January 2023 and the UPCA was to enter into force on 1 April 2023. However, this timeline was changed again by a communication of 5 December 2022. According to the new timeline, the Sunrise...
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  •  
    08.02.2023
    Asia-Pacific

    APAC IP Up­date – Winter 2022/2023

    ChinaCNIPA released the announcement of Interim Measures for Handling Relevant Examination Operations for the Implementation of the Amended Patent LawIn order to ensure the implementation of the newly amended Patent Law and respond to the urgent examination needs of innovators for review of partial designs and domestic priority of designs, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) issued the announcement of Interim Measures for Handling Relevant Examination Operations for the Implementation of the Amended Patent Law on 4 January 2023. The Interim Measures took effect on 11...
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  •  
    26.01.2023
    United Kingdom

    The im­port­ance of the in­vent­ive concept: Teva in­val­id­ates two No­vartis pat­ents

    In a recent High Court decision, HHJ Hacon made clear that the inventive concept of a patent (for the purposes of both validity and infringement) cannot be stretched to constitute a concept outside that which was claimed. This is because the invention is prima facie that specified in the claim, the inventive concept is the core of the of the invention claimed, therefore the inventive concept of a claim cannot encompass matter which forms no part of the invention as a whole, i.e. that which is not specified in the claim. This meant that when identifying the inventive concept, features claimed could...
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