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Community Patent: The EU Stuck Again?

By Sascha E. Schalkwijk
September 02, 2004

The European Union (“EU”) has once again failed to come to an agreement regarding a single unitary Community patent. At the May 18, 2004 Competitiveness Council meeting, the Council of the European Union (“Council”) could not reach a unanimous agreement on the proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community patent. The only outstanding issue that has been a stumbling block all along, ie, languages and translation costs of the patent claims, remained unresolved. The EU's main decision-making body concluded that all conceivable compromise solutions had been tried. Accordingly, it stated its intent to refer the matter to the Presidency of the European Council.

This article will provide some background and history regarding the current European patent system and the concept of a Community patent system. Further, the main reasons for the failure of achieving a Community patent will be examined. Additionally, the latest initiatives relating to European patents will be discussed.

Background

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