The UK’s vote to leave the European Union (EU) has created uncertainty for intellectual property rights in Europe. The situation for patents is simple though – there will be no change when the UK leaves the EU.

The European Patent Office (EPO) has never been part of the EU, so Carpmaels & Ransford will continue to provide pan-European prosecution and litigation in the UK national courts, as we have done for many years.

While there are no changes for European patents or the existing system of patent litigation, it is likely that the planned Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court might be subject to delays and changes. We will continue to provide updates. For more information, please see our Brexit resources.