Impacts of Establishment of Unitary Patent System in European Union

Undoubtedly, one of the most significant changes in the patent system is the recent EU Member States’ agreement on signing and approving the regulations concerning new unitary patent system. On the basis of this agreement, after the grant of patents by European Patent Office, there would be no need for patentees to validate their patents for which unitary effect has been requested in the territory of participating EU Member States. This agreement also includes the creation of Unified Patent Court with exclusive jurisdiction over unitary patents and European patents throughout member States. Due to the importance of this agreement, the identification and clarification of its legal and economic impacts on the policies of the industries and companies in regard to research, innovations and commercialization of patented inventions is deemed to be imperative. This Article tries to study the details of this agreement and analyses legal consequences of the establishment of the new patent system in Europe.