BREAKING: German Constitutional Court to rule on UPC complaint
The German Constitutional Court has announced on its website that a judgment in the complaint filed by Ingve Stjerna can be expected on Friday. There will be no further oral hearing.
18 March 2020 by Laura King
The Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe will now decide on FRAND rules ©Wikimedia
An outcome in the long-awaited constitutional complaint against the Geraman UPC legislation filed by Düsseldorf lawyer Ingve Stjerna in 2017 is finally on the horizon. Today, the Federal Constitutional Court has announced its plan to issue a verdict on Friday 20 March. There will be no further oral hearings.
For two years, the court’s annual forecast has listed the UPC complaint, but still there has been no ruling. The complaint brought German ratification of the UPC agreement to a halt. At the time, the agreement had already passed through parliament and the only remaining step was for president Frank-Walter Steinmeier to sign the bill.
Fears had been growing that the UPC would never get off the ground, especially with the UK’s recent withdrawal from the project. However, consitutional judge Peter Huber stoked interest once again when he announced a verdict could be expected in the first quarter of 2020.
The European patent community now waits to see whether the UPC will finally be given the green light.
Watch this space.
