The British IP magazine “Managing Intellectual Property” publishes a list of “Rising Stars in IP” annually in November. The list is compiled by conducting surveys among IP offices and professionals, among other things. Recently, a list of “Notable Practitioners” has been added to acknowledge those outstanding IP experts who were previously ranked as Rising Stars. Patent attorneys Jetze Beeksma, Henri van Kalkeren and Peter de Lange have been acknowledged as new Rising Stars. Martin Klok and Rutger Timmer have been acknowledged as Notable Practitioners.

Earlier this year, the German Constitutional Court ruled that the introduction of a bill on the approval of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) was unconstitutional, because the draft ratification bill had not been adopted with the required two-thirds majority of the German parliament.

On 26 November 2020, the German Bundestag (cf. House of Representatives in the Netherlands and Belgium) passed the bill with the required majority. The next step in the German ratification process is approval by the Bundesrat (cf. Senate). The session of the Bundesrat is scheduled for 18 December 2020.

According to the European Commission, it would now be possible for the UPC and the UP (Unitary Patent, or EU Patent) to become operational in 2022. This would mean that in the course of 2021 the period would begin - the so-called sunrise period - for which existing European patent rights can be used under the opt-out arrangement. As a result, they will continue to be covered by the current system and any court cases will be heard through the national courts.

Read our dossier ‘A new European Patent System’.

The first three webinars from of a series of six on strategic handling of IP were extremely popular. The first webinar was about patents in general, the second was about trademark and design protection, and the third webinar was about patent databases and research. You can see these three webinars on our website.

Episode four, about collaboration, NDAs, and confidentiality will be broadcast on December 17. You can read more about it in the Collaboration article. In the “Valuation, licensing, and sales” broadcast on February 18, attorney-at-law Annelies de Bosch Kemper and patent attorney Martin Klok will provide insight into what is involved with determining the value of your IP. Among other things, you will find out about the factors that play a role in valuation, the method used to determine the value, the different types of licenses, what to look out for when offering or entering into licenses, and what is involved when selling your IP.

In the sixth and final webinar “Infringement and opposition” that will be broadcast on March 18, patent attorney Henri van Kalkeren gives insight into what is involved in IP opposition and infringement. He will explain what the difference is between the two and what nullity proceedings are. Furthermore, he will clarify how the procedure works when someone infringes on your patent or when you are accused of infringement.

During the broadcast you can also submit your questions via the live chat. They will be answered by a team of patent attorneys. The webinars start at 3:00 pm. You can register for the upcoming seminars for free via our website. You can also watch all the previous webinars via our website.

The Netherlands Patent Office (OCN), that falls under the Netherlands Enterprise Agency, is offering an accelerated search procedure in digital patent databases for inventions that play a role in controlling the coronavirus. Usually this type of search takes about four weeks, but the OCN is now applying a considerably shorter procedure of only two working days. It includes carrying out an orienting search that offers insight into what others have already invented in the same technical field. The search also shows which existing technical solutions can be used. You can then decide whether to apply for a patent. The OCN states that this accelerated search procedure is not a novelty search or a binding recommendation. It is purely a stepping stone for entrepreneurs to explore the market. That means that based on the search results, you will still need to do additional searches in patent databases or employ a patent attorney. You can find more information on the OCN website.

The Groningen office of V.O. moved to the Leonard Springerlaan 17 on 7 December. Thirteen years earlier, on exactly the same date, the office had moved from Heresingel 7 to Heresingel 3. The monumental, classic buildings situated against the city center have made way for an efficiently divided and ground floor office unit in the Martini Trade Park, on the south side of Groningen, near the Julianaplein junction. Everything with a modern and fresh appearance. The office is easily accessible from the A7 and A27 motorways and has an excellent public transport connection. The colleagues are happy with their new accommodation and are ready to serve existing and new customers.