At the beginning of the summer, the EU Presidency made a proposal for a common European patent court. The Justice Department referred the proposal for consideration and the Swedish Patent and Registration Office (PRV), among others, has now given its response.

The court is in demand from industry and the aim is for, not least, small and medium enterprises to have access to a uniform judicial review, characterized by a high level of competence, legal security, a smooth process and reasonable costs.

In its response, PRV expresses concern that the proposed judicial system will not live up to expectations. PRV has particular reservations about the following:

•  that the court should be entirely self-funded, risking fees being so high that less financially strong companies are excluded,
• that different process languages can be used in court instances, making the process more expensive and counteracting legal security,
• that no guarantees are being given that technical members will be included in the court's first instance,
• that issues regarding patent infringement and invalidity may be divided into different trials, causing unnecessary complication and expense, and
• that there are still no clear rules of procedure.