UPC falters again - a boost for arbitration

As many of you will know, this morning the German Constitutional Court ruled against the purported ratification by Germany of the European Agreement on a Unified Patent Court. This after the indication earlier this month from the UK Government that the UK would not be joining, even if it were allowed to. For the time being at least, the UPC is dead in the water. Any resolution of the German, and even the UK, objections will likely take years.

For many people this will be big disappointment, especially for those of us who over period of a decade or so worked to make this happen.

In these unprecedented times, all companies are looking for ways to save money and stay in business. For those of them who have patent disputes in the offing which cannot wait, the prospect of spending an extended period of time on bringing and / or defending proceedings in multiple European national patent courts may not be an attractive one.

One possibility which those businesses and their legal advisers may like to consider is resolving those disputes by agreement through international arbitration, and even by way of an expedited process.

There is another benefit of course: that is that where appropriate the scope of the arbitration need not be limited to Europe but may cover all other relevant territories around the world.

Hearings can be conducted by video conferencing - so greatly improved now - and when a number of sites offer that service in London, and elsewhere. During the course of the arbitration proceedings, and with the issues clarified, the climate may even be conducive to the parties agreeing further to a mediation of an amicable resolution.

Not a practicable option for all cases by any means I know but one nevertheless worth reflecting on at this exceptional time.