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UK Government's Decision to Ratify UPC Agreement Leaves UK Businesses Wondering

on Friday, 13 January 2017.

As Brexit concerns continue to play a dominating role in British business, the UK Government has announced that it is "proceeding with preparations to ratify the Unified Patent Court Agreement".

This particular move may not come as a shock to many as the Government continues with its promise that the UK will "continue to play a full and active role" in the EU until Brexit becomes a reality.

However, despite the announcement not turning some heads, for others it puts to an end to a period of uncertainty as people were waiting to see whether the Government was going to ratify or not. This is not the end of the uncertainty, though. It does highlight the further question of what this decision means for UK businesses. On the one hand, the news appears to show that the UK wants to continue to play a part in the Unified Patent Court system and reap the benefits this should bring to European businesses, but on the other it shows a lack of clarity over whether this is even possible and further highlights the continuing Brexit question mark which continues to hover over the UK economy.

The ratification of the Unified Patent Court Agreement should be seen as a positive sign that the UK Government wants to protect the interests of UK patent holders by opening up their options with access to a unified patent - a single patent which grants patent protection to its owner across the EU, or possibly wider. However, this 'roses are red' attitude has been given a healthy does of realism by the UK minister for intellectual property who has warned that "the decision to proceed with ratification should not be seen as pre-empting the UK's objectives or position in the forthcoming negotiations with the EU".

As a result, whilst we can herald the progression of the ratification of the Unified Patent Court Agreement as a stepping stone towards the dream of a more cohesive IP scheme throughout Europe, hard or soft Brexit, we also need to pinch ourselves and remember that until Brexit is signed, sealed and delivered, we remain only hopeful - at best.

Watch this space for the next instalment.


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