I propose to take Questions Nos. 128 to 132, inclusive, together.
In December 2012, political agreement was reached under the Cypriot Presidency on what is referred to as the patents “package” which comprises of two EU Regulations on the creation of a unitary patent and the applicable translation arrangements, as well as an international Agreement on a Unified Patent Court.
It is our objective, under the Irish Presidency, to complete the final formal stage of this process which involves obtaining the signature of participating Member States to the International Agreement on the Unified Patent Court. After signature of the Agreement, Member States will commence the ratification process. The process of ratification of the Agreement on the Unified Patent Court is one that must be addressed individually by each Member State and is primarily a national issue.
In Ireland’s case, this will entail holding a constitutional referendum to allow the transfer of limited jurisdictional powers to the Unified Patent Court relating solely to patent disputes. This is not without precedent, as Ireland previously amended the constitution in 1992 to allow for the ratification of the Agreement relating to Community Patents, which subsequently did not come into effect.
This proposed transfer of jurisdictional powers will enable a unitary patent for at least twenty-five EU Member States to be properly enforced, enhancing the Single Market for intellectual property. This shift towards the Unified Patent Court will ensure uniformity of decisions on key issues relating to the new unitary patent and will create a new legal paradigm of a judicial remedy for unitary patents which will lessen costs and improve legal certainty in the EU.
Under the current system, a European patent can be enforced only at national level, which entails translating it into the official language of the country concerned. Under the proposed unitary patent system and associated translation arrangements, once the patent is granted, it will be automatically enforceable in 25 Member States without the need for further translations. It is important to point out however that automatic machine translations of patent specifications into all EU languages is currently being developed and when fully implemented will uphold the principle of linguistic diversity within the European Union.
Currently, translation costs of patent specifications represent a very high proportion of the cost of the European patent and this places Europe at a distinct disadvantage vis-à-vis other major trading partners such as the United States and others. The European Commission estimates that patent translations can account for up to sixty-three per cent of the cost of protecting a patent in Europe.
It is anticipated that the Agreement will come into effect in 2014, along with the corresponding EU Regulations on the unitary patent system. This will enable participating Member States to obtain a unitary patent valid in 25 Member States at a fraction of the current cost, while also making it far more affordable to enforce their patent rights.
