Dr. Florian Schwab analy­ses and comments on ECJ leading decision on design protec­tion in WTR Daily

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Papierfabriek Doetinchem BV vs Sprick GmbH Bielefelder Papier und Wellpappenwerk & Co (Case C 684/21), ECJ Judgment of 2 March 2023

The Court of Justice of the European Union, in its judgment in the long-standing legal dispute between Sprick GmbH and the competitor Papierfabriek Doetinchem, has repeatedly commented on practice-relevant questions of the barriers to design protection in the context of the reference for a preliminary ruling by the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court:

  1. When assessing the technical functionality of a design, how should the fact that the owner of the design in question has numerous alternative designs be dealt with?
  2. Is it to be taken into account for the exclusion of design protection that a registered design allows for a multi-coloured appearance, but this colour design does not result from the registration?

In his article in WTR Daily, Dr. Florian Schwab concludes that, as in its leading decision DOCERAM (judgment of 8 March 2018, C-395/16), the ECJ tends towards a rather broader interpretation of the exclusion clause. Although it is relevant for the determination whether the holder of the contested registered Community design has a large number of alternative designs, this circumstance is not decisive. In any case, the potential multicolour design of the product was not to be taken into account if this was not apparent from the registration of the design.

The article by Dr. Florian Schwab is available for download as a pdf here. This article first appeared in WTR Daily, part of World Trademark Review, in March 2023. For further information, please go to www.worldtrademarkreview.com.

Interview with Dr. Michael Rüberg and Dr. Markus Engel­hard in the SMART Legal Guide supple­ment of the news­paper “Die Welt”

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Opportunities and risks of the European Unitary Patent System

With the entry into force of the new European Unitary Patent System, it is possible to obtain patent protection in up to 25 EU-member states with a single application. This is an immense simplification for patent protection in the EU area, but one that also presents certain stumbling blocks that companies and patent owners should keep in mind.

In the article “New Unitary Patent System – Correctly Weighing Opportunities and Risks”, attorney at law Dr. Michael Rüberg and patent attorney Dr. Markus Engelhard – two of BOEHMERT & BOEHMERT’s UPC experts – raise awareness of this topic in an interview. In addition, they provide insight into other questions that companies should focus on when the Unified Patent Court starts its work.

The interview with Dr Michael Rüberg and Dr. Markus Engelhard, publishes on 21 March 2023, is available for download in German as a PDF here. You can find the complete edition of the SMART Legal Guide here.

“BioNTech goes – what does Germany do?” article by Dr. Ute Kilger and Elmar Jehn in the maga­zine “Euro­pean Bio­tech­nolo­gy”

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BioNTech, the superstar of mRNA research, announces its strategic partnership with the British government at the beginning of January 2023 and with it the establishment of a regional headquarters for the company in London for the development and application of personalised mRNA therapies and vaccines against cancer.

A step that raises questions about Germany as a research location. The framework conditions for such projects seem to be more attractive elsewhere – shouldn’t this be a wake-up call for the German biotech industry?

In their article “BioNTech goeas – what does Germany do?” in the spring issue of the trade magazine “European Biotechnology”, BOEHMERT & BOEHMERT partner and patent attorney Dr. Ute Kilger and Elmar Jehn, partner at Global Nation Consulting, analyse the German response to the BioN-Tech decision and attest to the fact that politics and industry representatives are generally too defensive in international competition.
While politicians have to make the framework conditions more efficient and research-friendly, the biotech industry itself has to represent its interests more clearly. What is needed is greater self-confidence in view of the immense contribution of research-based companies to the well-being of people and the economy. What is needed is a political and media offensive that focuses on the achievements of biotech and at the same time conveys understanding and knowledge for the requirements of a successful research future.
BioNTech’s decision shows that others in the industry must exert all the more influence on German politics to push forward legislative projects for faster procedures for the approval of factories, medicines and research projects.

The article of Dr. Ute Kilger and Elmar Jehn is available in English here on page 12 of the e-Journal of European Biotechnology.

Keio IP Forum on 28 March 2023 with Christian W. Appelt and Prof. Dr. Heinz Goddar

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At this year’s IP Forum of Keio University Tokyo on the topic of “Global Dispute Resolution and IP Strategies after Establishment of UPC”, BOEHMERT & BOEHMERT will be represented by the two partners and patent attorneys Prof. Dr. Heinz Goddar and Christian W. Appelt.

What effects can be expected from the Unified Patent Court (UPC), which will start its work in June 2023, for worldwide litigation? To what extent will IP strategies have to be adapted in order to continue to be successful? These and many other questions will be answered for interested listeners by a variety of renowned names from the IP legal industry at this year’s forum. In addition to the two BOEHMERT & BOEHMERT partners, the list of speakers and moderators includes high-ranking judges from Germany, Europe, the USA and Japan, as well as big names from Japanese industry.

More detailed information on the event can be found here. Registration for the face-to-face event in Tokyo is possible here. The event will be held in English and Japanese, with simultaneous translation.

UPC Webinar on March 17, 2023 at 8:00 a.m. CET

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Upon the invitation of IPR Daily and GDOIP, Dr. Matthias Hofmann and Hongting Wu will speak on strategies in the context of the Unitary Patent System

The European Unitary Patent System will enter into force on June 1, 2023, and the sunrise period has already begun. But should patent owners now opt for the new unitary patents or rather for the classical European bundle patents? And how should they proceed with existing bundle patents? Is opt-out a viable option here?

BOEHMERT & BOEHMERT partner and patent attorney Dr. Matthias Hofmann together with Hongting Wu, patent engineer at BOEHMERT & BOEHMERT, will answer these and other questions during their webinar on March 17, 2023 at 8:00 am CET and 3:00 pm CST (China standard time).
The webinar came about at the invitation of IPR Daily and GDOIP (Guangdong Overseas Intellectual Property Protection Promotion Association) and is preferentially targeted at the Chinese IP community. The presentations will be held in English and translated directly into Chinese by Mr. Hongting Wu.

The main topics at a glance:

  • Brief introduction to the Unified Patent System and the Unified Patent Court
  • Advantages and disadvantages of the European Unitary Patent
  • Considerations for your existing European patent portfolio
  • New filing strategies for efficient patent protection in Europe

Registration

We will gladly accept your registration here. We are looking forward to your participation!