The London branch of the Unified Patent Court is to open in December, according to the preparatory committee working to set it up. The court will hear cases involving unified patents, a new EU-wide form of patent. The government indicated in November that it would ratify the Unified Patent Court Agreement, despite current uncertainties over the UK’s Brexit negotiations. The court will operate under EU law. Its main courts will be in the UK, France and Germany.
19 January 2017
Unified Patent Court to open in December
MOVERS & SHAKERS
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Winckworth Sherwood—Rubianka Winspear
Real estate and construction energy offering boosted by partner hire
Gateley Legal—Daniel Walsh
Firm bolsters real estate team with partner hire in Birmingham
Shakespeare Martineau—Serena Eddy
London restructuring team strengthened by legal director appointment
NEWS
A wave of housing and procedural reforms is set to test the limits of tribunal capacity. In his latest Civil Way column for NLJ this week, Stephen Gold charts sweeping change as the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 begins biting
Plans to reduce jury trials risk missing the real problem in the criminal justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, David Wolchover of Ridgeway Chambers argues the crown court backlog is fuelled not by juries but weak cases slipping through a flawed ‘50%’ prosecution test
Emerging technologies may soon transform how courts determine truth in deeply personal disputes. In this week's NLJ, Madhavi Kabra of 1 Hare Court and Harry Lambert of Outer Temple Chambers explore how neurotechnology could reshape family law
A controversial protest case has reignited debate over the limits of free expression. In NLJ this week, Nicholas Dobson examines a Quran-burning incident testing public order law
The courts have drawn a firm line under attempts to extend arbitration appeals. Writing in NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed of the University of Leicester highlights that if the High Court refuses permission under s 68 of the Arbitration Act 1996, that is the end
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