CJEU Advocate General: 25 member states can agree a unitary patent deal

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 4 Bouverie Street, London, EC4Y 8AX

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

CJEU Advocate General: 25 member states can agree a unitary patent deal

An important hurdle in the path of the unitary patent looks set to be dismantled after a key legal adviser at the Court of Justice of the EU said today that 25 member states should be able to press ahead with a deal without Italy and Spain

Last year the two countries asked Europe’s highest court to stop the European Council from pursuing the unitary patent package under the enhanced cooperation procedure.

The two countries are particularly unhappy about the proposal to make English, French and German the official languages of the unitary patent system.

Today Advocate General Bot said that the question of the language arrangements for the unitary patent “is not a condition that determines the validity of the decision authorising enhanced cooperation” and advised the Court to rule that Italy and Spain’s request to prevent the use of the enhanced cooperation procedure is inadmissible.

Italy and Spain had argued that enhanced cooperation procedure authorised by the Council would undermine the internal market and economic, social and territorial cohesion; constitute a barrier to trade between member states; and distort competition between them.

But Bot dismissed their claims. “To my mind there is no evidence that it would do so: indeed, it would do precisely the opposite,” he wrote.

Although the Court is not obliged to follow the Advocate General’s advice, it does in the majority of cases.

The Court of Justice is expected to rule in the case next year.

Keep up to date with all the unitary patent developments by bookmarking Managing IP's dedicated unitary patent page.






more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

The England and Wales appeals court handed down its judgment just seven working days after hearing the trademark dispute involving pharma company Merck
A host of law firms from across Europe and beyond helped bring the streaming technology dispute to a close
Hugues Derème, director general of the Benelux IP Office, unveils his vision for the region, how to improve IP awareness, and use of AI
A copyright win for AI firm Anthropic and a new executive order against law firm Jenner & Block were also among the top talking points this week
A principal at Schwegman Lundberg & Woessner explains how AI tools, including DeepIP, can position the firm to help clients
The firm explains why AI-empowered data analytics could make it a more efficient advocate for its clients
Penelope Aspinall, of IP wellbeing charity Jonathan’s Voice, explains why managers should take a three-tiered approach to looking after workers’ mental health
Heath Hoglund talks about the value proposition of patent pools and why it went ahead with its first-ever series of pool meetings in China
Ryan Richardson, Chris O’Brien, and Jean Selep of Sterne Kessler analyse the treatment of SEPs at the UPC and ITC and highlight why SEP holders and implementers should be mindful of current developments in both forums
A ruling concerning the UPC’s jurisdiction, questions over costs transparency, and a missed deadline by Amazon were among the top talking points this fortnight
Gift this article