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No agreement on patent Regulation expected before the end of the year

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Published 23 May 2002 - Updated 29 January 2010
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IPhealth software patent
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The Internal Market Council on 21 May agreed to continue disagreeing on the proposal for an EU wide patent, as no agreement was reached on issues such as language and jurisdiction.

Background: 
The Internal Market Council agreed that the EU Presidency's proposal is "a basis on which to work". Mr Ramon de Miguel, the Spanish Council President, admitted, however, that full agreement could probably not be expected "before the end of the year". The draft conclusions on the proposal state:
  • the full request should be registered in French, English or German and the main part (the claims) should also be translated in all 11 EU languages;
  • appeals should be dealt with in Luxembourg by a central patent Chamber;
  • the Munich Patent Office (Germany) should be responsible for examining and issuing EU wide patents;
  • income from patent registrations and renewals should be equally shared by the European Patent Office and the national offices;
  • the Regulation should be reviewed five years after implementation.
The majority of Member States have reservations about the high costs of translating claims.

 

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