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The UPC Hub

Case reports, trends, insights and the litigators behind them. One place to follow how the UPC is shaping patent litigation in Europe.

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40UPC Representatives when Uniphy launched
3European countries with EIP offices: the UK, Germany and Sweden

Ready for the UPC long before it opened.

We have run patent litigation across the UK and Germany for well over a decade. When the UPC opened in June 2023, our Uniphy team was ready from day one.

Our litigators and patent attorneys work as one team across UPC, UK and German proceedings.

Tap a year to explore

Established UK and German litigation practices

  • Built experience across electronics, telecoms, pharma and medtech
  • Integrated patent attorneys and litigators

Ran major cross-border actions across the UK and Germany

  • Handled FRAND, SEP and multi-jurisdictional disputes
  • Prepared for pan-European litigation long before the UPC existed

UPC goes live and we launch Uniphy

  • 40 UPC Representatives at launch
  • Seamless transition into UPC litigation from day one

Landmark wins: Optis v Apple (UK) and Datang v Samsung (Germany)

  • Reinforced our reputation as a pan-European litigation leader
  • Coordinated actions across the UK, Germany and the UPC

Growing UPC caseload and specialist team

  • Enhanced Europe-wide litigation strategy
  • Continuing to shape UPC practice
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Compulsory licensing in India – Must products be manufactured locally?

16 March 2012
2012-03-16

The first compulsory licence of an Indian patent since the TRIPS regime was implemented in India has been awarded. Although the licence relates to a pharmaceutical product, the grounds on which the...

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Life
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Patent Strategy
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TRIPS and compulsory licensing

15 March 2012
2012-03-15

Following on from his IPKat post about India granting its first compulsory licence, Darren Smyth explores what limitations the TRIPS agreement puts on compulsory licensing in his latest blog.

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Life
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India grants first compulsory licence

14 March 2012
2012-03-14

The first compulsory licence has been granted by the Controller of Patents Mumbai.The application concerns the anti-cancer drug Sorafenib, a patented drug owned by Bayer Corporation.

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Life
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Scientific publishing: learned society journals v commercial alternatives

09 March 2012
2012-03-09

The subject of today's IPKat post - The Cost of Knowledge - by Darren Smyth concerns a campaign against Elsevier, the publisher of academic journals.

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Elements
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EPO Boards of Appeal: recent decisions

05 March 2012
2012-03-05

Recent decisions of the Boards of Appeal of the EPO are now updated continuously on the EPO website.In today's IPKat blog, Darren Smyth highlights some noteworthy cases from the first two months of...

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Elements
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Owning Community registered design provides no protection from infringement proceedings

02 March 2012
2012-03-02

SummaryThe Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has confirmed that owning a Community registered design (CRD) does not provide a defence to an infringement action relating to earlier CRDs.

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Building a Resilient Quantum Patent Portfolio: Winning the Race to File First
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EPO and Google launch patent translation service

29 February 2012
2012-02-29

The European Patent Office (EPO) has launched a new patent translation service which uses Google's Translate technology.Reported by partner Darren Smyth via his IPKat blog, the service initially...

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Elements
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Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Ltd v Medimmune Ltd & Anor – Self-perpetuating references to the CJEU

24 February 2012
2012-02-24

Multiple rulings of the CJEU on the SPC Regulation fail to answer questions posed by the national courts, result in greater confusion and give rise to a need for yet more references.

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Litigation
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Life
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Colour and Composition: Just how relevant are they?

23 February 2012
2012-02-23

The issues of colour and composition form the basis of the questions referred to the CJEU by the Court of Appeal in this case of Specsavers International Healthcare & ors v Asda Stores Ltd.

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Trademarking
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Legitimate to improve your position in litigation by obtaining a new trademark registration – confirmation by UK Court of Appeal

17 February 2012
2012-02-17

The Court of Appeal has confirmed that it can be acceptable to improve your position in litigation by obtaining a new trademark registration in the period between the start of infringing acts and...

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Trademarking
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IPKat: Latest posts by Darren Smyth

13 February 2012
2012-02-13

Partner Darren Smyth has made his second and third posts since joining the IPKat as a guest blogger.What is obvious - the route or the destination? is about the approach taken by patent offices to...

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Elements
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IPKat: Catalogue of Interest from the EPO

02 February 2012
2012-02-02

Following yesterday's announcement that Darren Smyth has been appointed as the third guest blogger on the IPKat, he has now made his first post.

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Elements
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Crystal polymorph patenting becomes more difficult in Europe

17 January 2012
2012-01-17

The EPO has just officially published (T 777/08 Atorvstatin Polymorphs OJEPO 12/2011 633-643) a decision of the Technical Boards of Appeal which surprisingly finds that, in general, a claim to a...

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Life
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All in the American mind? US and UK take different approaches to assessing mental act exclusions

21 December 2011
2011-12-21

In a recent EIP newsflash we reported a recent development in the way the UK Intellectual Property Office handles subject matter excluded from patentability, based on a High Court judgement relating...

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Digital
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M&S v Interflora – the latest CJEU ruling on the use of keywords

14 December 2011
2011-12-14

Can use by a competitor of a trademark as a keyword in an advertising service, such as Google’s AdWords service, be restricted by the proprietor of the trademark? Services such as AdWords allow...

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Trademarking
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Winning mixed practice team

Since its establishment in 2011, our patent litigation team has been dedicated to delivering exceptional results.

With the UPC's launch announced in 2023, our patent litigators have been actively advising on various high-profile UPC proceedings, and appearing in UPC divisions across Europe.

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German and UK litigators

Since 2014 our German patent litigators have handled major German national cases and, more recently, in leading cases at the UPC. EIP was successful in the first UPC anti-anti suit injunction, gained on behalf of our client.

The UK can be decisive when devising a litigation strategy in Europe.  With the success of our team of UK litigators, we are routinely trusted with high value cases including those at the highest Supreme Court of the UK.  We are well placed to advise on using the UK courts and/or the UPC’s “long arm” jurisdiction.

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Patent attorneys doing litigation

Patent attorneys add unique value to litigation and enhance our results. 

This is especially so for the UPC because all patents litigated at the UPC have been granted by the European Patent Office (EPO) and so are governed by a unique blend of UPC and EPO case law which needs intricate knowledge.

Moreover, where possible the same patent attorney will have drafted and strategically prosecuted the case in suit, and can run any parallel EPO opposition proceedings, bringing deep technical continuity to the litigation.

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UPC strategy

The UPC presents unique challenges compared with national patent litigation.  The streamlined timeline from service to decision is short, around 12 months, and the judges are given limited time to work on a case. The court sets tight deadlines to prepare and file each round of written briefs. A UPC action needs deep technical analysis upfront; to develop the winning strategy and present the best arguments.

Often the UPC case is part of a multi-dimensional portfolio.  Our patent attorneys strategically prosecute patent applications and develop portfolios, working closely with our litigators, to secure claims ready for assertion and robust to challenge at the UPC.

Meet our Head of Knowledge

The UPC is still new by established court standards, and the body of case law is still evolving. Well before the UPC launched, our Head of Knowledge championed the UPC laws and processes, and he has continued to closely follow all the evolving case law.

Darren is a European patent attorney with decades of contentious experience at the EPO, and is an honorary professor at Queen Mary University of London, teaching IP law.

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Darren Smyth
Partner, UK and European Patent Attorney, Design Attorney, UPC Representative
Speak to an expert

Meet our UPC team

Our team includes leading Attorneys-at-Law in Germany, technically skilled European patent attorneys, and highly reputed UK solicitors with experience in some of the largest European patent cases. With specialists based in Germany, Sweden (home to the UPC’s only regional division), and the UK (Europe’s largest litigation venue outside the UPC), we field formidable teams tailored to each case.

Our attorneys have worked together successfully for many years, enabling us to respond quickly and intelligently under the UPC’s tight timelines and new procedures. We offer clients a single point of contact for co-ordinated, cross-border litigation support.

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Christof Höhne
Partner, Rechtsanwalt, UPC Representative
Jerome Spaargaren
Partner, UK and European Patent Attorney, UPC Representative
Matthew Blaseby
Partner, UK and European Patent Attorney, UPC Representative
Michael Nielsen
Partner, UK and European Patent Attorney, UPC Representative
Monika Rai
Partner, UK and European Patent Attorney, Solicitor, UPC Representative
Isabelle Schaller
Partner, Rechtsanwältin, UPC Representative
Sebastian Fuchs
Partner, Rechtsanwalt, UPC Representative
Gareth Probert
Partner, UK and European Patent Attorney, UPC Representative
Heather McCann
Partner, UK and European Patent Attorney, UPC Representative
James Seymour
Partner, UK and European Patent Attorney, UPC Representative
Catherine Howell
Partner, Solicitor

Discover our featured insights

Stay informed with the latest UPC developments and the global IP landscape. Tune into our EIP Talks podcast, explore expert insights and browse our published articles and thought leadership, all designed to keep you ahead in the world of intellectual property.

see more

UPC appeals after three years: Early indications on appeal success rates
15 July 2026
Three years into the UPC, appeal overturn rates sit at 56% for both substantive and preliminary injunction cases, with Kodak v Fujifilm among the rulings reshaping outcomes on appeal.
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The UPC After Three Years: From Experiment to Enforcement Forum
15 July 2026
1,282 cases filed at the UPC in three years: infringement actions have surged while revocation filings stayed flat, easing fears the Court would become a European patent graveyard.
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Choosing your SEP battleground: UPC, Germany or UK?
07 June 2026
Choosing the right venue for SEP litigation can significantly influence the outcome of FRAND disputes. This article compares the UPC, German and UK courts, examining their approaches to injunctions, FRAND defences, rate-setting and enforcement. It highlights the strategic advantages of each jurisdiction and explains why many SEP owners are increasingly turning to the UK and UPC as part of their European enforcement strategy.
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Confidentiality at the UPC: What litigants need to know
21 January 2026
This article explains how the Unified Patent Court approaches confidentiality in litigation, outlining the procedures for restricting access to sensitive information, how confidentiality clubs are formed, and when hearings may be held in private. It highlights key case law shaping these rules, the balance between fair trial rights and protection of commercial data, and the penalties for breaches. Practical guidance is provided to help parties navigate applications, manage confidential documents, and understand what to expect throughout UPC proceedings.
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What is the likely timing of the UPC and UP coming into being?
09 June 2022
The Unified Patent Court (UPC) is currently completing preparations to be open for business (under the Protocol on the Provisional Application of the UPC Agreement (the ‘PAP-Protocol')).
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The latest from the Newsroom on UPC

Explore the Newsroom

Replacement parts and the value of asserting a narrower claim combination
17 July 2026
The UPC's Düsseldorf Local Division found that Wessper's cartridges indirectly infringed Brita's patent, and that a narrower claim combination can turn a consumable into an essential element.
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Late Applications for Provisional Measures Refused for Lack of Urgency
14 July 2026
In Ericsson v ASUSTeK, the Milan Local Division refused a provisional measures application filed 21 months into the case, finding continuing infringement and rising losses alone do not establish urgency.
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UPC revokes provisional injunction on motorbike helmet intercoms system
29 June 2026
The UPC Local Division Milan revoked Cardo's provisional injunction against Reso, ruling its helmet intercom products fall outside the scope of EP4240194, neither literally nor by equivalence.
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Preliminary objection on jurisdiction partially successful – UPC clarifies requirements of anchor-defendant jurisdiction for non-UPC territories
25 June 2026
The Hamburg Local Division let Nixu pursue US-based Infoblox in the UPC for Germany, France and Finland, but threw out the UK claim. To reach a non-UPC territory through an anchor defendant, a claimant must plead joint infringement there.
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UPC applies party-driven equivalence test in absence of Court of Appeal guidance
25 June 2026
The Helsinki Local Division found AIM's TV-advertising patent valid but not infringed by TGI, and with no Court of Appeal ruling on equivalence yet, adopted the four-step test both sides put forward, the UPC following the parties' lead.
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Prosecution history in claim interpretation at the EPO
10 June 2026
In Agathon v Intercom, the UPC's Milan Local Division confirmed that statements made during EPO prosecution are not binding but can offer low-weight guidance on the skilled person's view — here narrowing 'abuts' against the patentee.
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Revocation of an order to inspect and preserve evidence as Applicant did not start proceedings on the merits, R. 198.1 RoP
09 June 2026
In Otec v Steros, the UPC's Dusseldorf Local Division revoked an ex parte inspection order after the applicant failed to sue on the merits in time, ordering all preserved evidence returned and destroyed.
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UPC Court of Appeal reverses infringement ruling in both Germany and UK
05 June 2026
On 2 June 2026 the UPC Court of Appeal overturned the Mannheim Local Division's infringement findings against Kodak in both Germany and the UK, on a prior user right in Germany, and on lack of defendant liability in the UK, while upholding the validity of EP 3511174 as amended and laying down a structured framework for exercising jurisdiction over non-EU designations.
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UPC finds infringement of two motorcycle tyres patents following international exhibition
05 June 2026
These Decisions from the Local Division of the Unified Patent Court in Milan relate to EP2519412 and EP3519207. The Applicant, Pirelli Tyre S.P.A. ("Pirelli") brought two separate infringement actions following respective seizure orders against Tianjin Kingtyre Group Co., Ltd ("Kingtyre") and Sichuan Yuanxing Rubber Co., Ltd. ("SYR"), in view of the exhibition of allegedly infringing products by the defendants at the "International Motorcycle Exhibition" ("EICMA") between 5 and 10 November 2024.
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