Getting an EU-wide patent is far from cheap. Currently, the Commission estimates the cost to be in the region of €50,000 – five times more expensive than the cost of registering a patent in Japan or the US. It anticipates that a Community Patent will cost €25,000.
The text agreed covers the main principles and features of the jurisdictional system for the Community Patent, the language regime, costs, the role of national patent offices and the distribution of fees.
The establishment of a Community Patent system has been delayed several times. In fact, it was first proposed 30 years ago. One reason for the delay was a failure to agree a suitable court system. In terms of Monday's agreement, a Community Patent Court will be set up by 2010 at the latest.
The Community Patent Court shall deal with, among other matters, disputes over alleged invalidity or infringement and actions for declarations of non-infringement. A right of appeal will exist to the Court of First Instance of the European Communities. Until its establishment, each Member State must nominate national courts to handle disputes.
The European Patent Office (EPO) will be responsible for examination of applications and the grant of Community Patents. However, national patent offices will still advise inventors on obtaining Community Patents.
The details are contained in pages 15-18 of a 26-page document that can be downloaded in PDF format from:
http://ue.eu.int/pressData/en/intm/74752.pdf