The London Agreement, formally the Agreement on the application of Article 65 of the Convention on the Grant of European Patents and sometimes referred to as the London Protocol, is a patent law agreement concluded in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
on 17 October 2000 and aimed at reducing the translation costs of European patents granted under the
European Patent Convention
The European Patent Convention (EPC), also known as the Convention on the Grant of European Patents of 5 October 1973, is a multilateral treaty instituting the European Patent Organisation and providing an autonomous legal system according to w ...
(EPC).
[European Patent Office (EPO) web site]
''London Agreement to enter into force in first half of 2008''
News, 11 September 2007. The London Agreement is an agreement between some member states of the
European Patent Organisation
The European Patent Organisation (sometimes abbreviated EPOrg in order to distinguish it from the European Patent Office, one of the two organs of the organisation) is a public international organisation created in 1977 by its contracting states t ...
,
and has not altered other language requirements applying to European patent applications prior to grant.
The London Agreement entered into force on 1 May 2008.
Background
Before 1 May 2008, once a European patent was granted or more precisely within three months (or six months for Ireland) from the date of grant, the patent had to be translated into an official language of each country in which the patentee wanted patent protection. If the translation of the European patent was not provided to the national
patent office within the prescribed time limit, the patent was "deemed to be void
ab initio
''Ab initio'' ( ) is a Latin term meaning "from the beginning" and is derived from the Latin ''ab'' ("from") + ''initio'', ablative singular of ''initium'' ("beginning").
Etymology
Circa 1600, from Latin, literally "from the beginning", from ab ...
in that State." This situation still applies in the Contracting States wherein the Agreement has not entered into force.
This situation led to high translation costs for patent holders, reduced the incentives to apply for a European patent and, many argued, the situation was a burden on the competitiveness of the
European economy
The economy of Europe comprises about 748 million people in 50 countries. The formation of the European Union (EU) and in 1999 the introduction of a unified currency, the Euro, brought participating European countries closer through the ...
, compared to the situation in the United States (see also EU's
Lisbon Strategy
The Lisbon Strategy, also known as the Lisbon Agenda or Lisbon Process, was an action and development plan devised in 2000, for the economy of the European Union between 2000 and 2010. A pivotal role in its formulation was played by the Portuguese ...
).
Content
The agreement provides that Contracting States that have an official language in common with an official language of the
European Patent Office
The European Patent Office (EPO) is one of the two organs of the European Patent Organisation (EPOrg), the other being the Administrative Council. The EPO acts as executive body for the organisation , i.e. English, French or German, no longer require translation of European patents into one of their official languages. Other contracting states have to choose one of the official languages of the EPO as a "prescribed language," in which European patents have to be translated to enter into force in their country. They however keep the right to require translation of the
claims in one of their official languages.
In addition, a Contracting State to the Agreement also keeps the right to require that, in case of a
dispute relating to a European patent, a translation should be provided by the patentee in one of the official languages of the state.
The agreement has not altered other language provisions applying prior to grant of a European patent, such as the requirement that the claims of a European patent application have to be translated "in the two official languages of the European Patent Office other than the language of the proceedings" after receiving the communication under indicating that the EPO intends to grant a European patent.
Implementation
The London Agreement entered into force for 14 countries on 1 May 2008, then for Lithuania as 15th contracting state on 1 May 2009, for Hungary as 16th contracting state on 1 January 2011, for Finland as 17th contracting state on 1 November 2011, for
North Macedonia
North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...
as 18th contracting state on 1 February 2012, and for Albania as 19th contracting state on 1 September 2013. In September 2012, the Irish patent legislation was amended "paving the way for Ireland's accession to the London Agreement."
''Ireland dispenses with the translation requirements under Article 65 EPC''
EPO Official Journal, 10/2012, page 510. Namely, for European patents granted in French or German on or after 3 September 2012, the filing of a translation into English is no longer required in Ireland.
[ Formally, Ireland became the 20th contracting state to the London Agreement on 1 March 2014. The London Agreement entered into force for Norway as 21st contracting state on 1 January 2015. On 1 January 2017, Belgian law was amended "paving the way for Belgium's accession to the London Agreement."] Namely, for European patents for which the mention of grant was published in the European Patent Bulletin The European Patent Bulletin is a weekly trilingual publication of the European Patent Office (EPO), generally issued every Wednesday. It contains "entries made in the Register of European Patents, as well as other particulars, the publication of w ...
on or after 1 January 2017, the filing of a translation "into a Belgian national language" is no longer required in Belgium no matter the language of the patent. Eventually, the London Agreement formally entered into force for Belgium as 22nd contracting state on 1 September 2019.
The current implementation of the London Agreement is as follows:[''The London Agreement has entered into force''](_blank)
, Swedish Patent and Registration Office The Swedish Intellectual Property Office, formerly the National wedishPatent and Registration Office ( sv, Patent- och registreringsverket, PRV), is a Swedish government agency based in Stockholm and Söderhamn in charge of patents, trademarks and ...
, 7 May 2008. Consulted on 13 May 2008.
Pursuant to article 9 of the Agreement, the regime applies to European patents in respect of which the mention of grant was published on or after 1 May 2008. The new language regime however already applied for Switzerland, Liechtenstein and the United Kingdom to European patents granted on or after 1 February 2008. Germany had some trouble with the implementation of the London Agreement. The original implementation bill was flawed due to miscalculations of the date of entry into force of the new translation requirements for European patents designating Germany. A new implementation bill was then published on 11 July 2008. The old translation requirements are no longer applicable in Germany retroactively as of 1 May 2008.
On 14 April 2010, the Court of Appeal of Paris
The Court of Appeal of Paris (french: Cour d'appel de Paris) is the largest appeals court in France in terms of the number of cases brought before it. Its jurisdiction covers the departments of Paris, Essonne, Yonne, Seine-et-Marne, Seine-Saint- ...
, France, issued 24 similar court decisions, holding that, since France has ratified the London Agreement, no translation in French needed to be filed at the French Patent Office
The National Industrial Property Institute (INPI, standing for ''Institut national de la propriété industrielle'' in French) is the national intellectual property office of France, in charge of patents, trademarks and industrial design rights. ...
(INPI) with respect of European patents maintained as amended after opposition proceedings
An opposition proceeding is an administrative process available under the patent and trademark law of many jurisdictions which allows third parties to formally challenge the validity of a pending patent application ("pre-grant opposition"), of a gr ...
, and that this applied also to European patents maintained as amended for which the original mention of grant has been published prior to the entry into force of the London Agreement. The French Court of Cassation upheld these decisions in November 2011.
History
The Agreement resulted from a process started at the Paris Conference on 24–25 June 1999, an intergovernmental conference of the member states of the European Patent Organisation held in Paris at the invitation of the French government
The Government of France ( French: ''Gouvernement français''), officially the Government of the French Republic (''Gouvernement de la République française'' ), exercises executive power in France. It is composed of the Prime Minister, who ...
.[ European Patent Office]
''Intergovernmental conference of the member states of the European Patent Organisation on the reform of the patent system in Europe, Paris, 24 and 25 June 1999''
OJ EPO 8–9/1999, pp. 545–553. The conference adopted a mandate
Mandate most often refers to:
* League of Nations mandates, quasi-colonial territories established under Article 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations, 28 June 1919
* Mandate (politics), the power granted by an electorate
Mandate may also ...
setting up two working parties with the task of submitting reports to the governments of the contracting states on reducing the cost of European patents and harmonising patent litigation. The first working party eventually led to the London Agreement while the second led to the proposed European Patent Litigation Agreement
The draft European Patent Litigation Agreement (EPLA), or formally the Draft Agreement on the establishment of a European patent litigation system, was a proposed patent law agreement aimed at creating an "optional protocol to the European Patent ...
. More precisely, the first working party was instructed to draft an "''optional protocol to the EPC, under which its signatory states undertake not to require the translation of the description of the European patent, provided that it is available in English... r alternativelyprovided that it is available in one of the official EPO languages as designated by each signatory state''". The name "London Protocol" is sometimes used to refer to the London Agreement, because the initial mandate mentioned a Protocol, rather than an Agreement.
The Agreement was then adopted at the London Conference of 2000, followed by a seven-year ratification process. On 18 April 2007, at the European Patent Forum in Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
, Germany, Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Oppo ...
said that she and German Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries
Brigitte Zypries (born 16 November 1953) is a German lawyer and politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). Between 2017 and 2018, she served as Minister for Economics and Energy in the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel; she was the fir ...
would fight to see the London Agreement realised.[EPO web site]
''"Patents are the future"''
Consulted on 20 April 2007. She called the London Agreement "an important step in the right direction".
This agreement was signed by 10 countries, namely Denmark, France, Germany, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. To enter into force, the deposit of instruments of ratification
Ratification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent that lacked the authority to bind the principal legally. Ratification defines the international act in which a state indicates its consent to be bound to a treaty if the parties inten ...
by at least eight countries, including at least France, Germany and the United Kingdom had to take place. Up to now, Monaco, Germany, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Netherlands, Liechtenstein, Luxemburg, Denmark, and France have deposited their instrument of ratification to the London Agreement while Slovenia, Iceland, Latvia and Croatia have deposited their instrument of accession (accession is also taken into account for the entry into force of the agreement). Sweden ratified on 29 April 2008.
Since France deposited its instruments of ratification on 29 January 2008, the agreement entered into force on 1 May 2008.
The ratification of the London Agreement by France, which for some time was the last missing step for the Agreement to enter into force, followed a number of steps, including the recommendation in May 2006 by the French National Assembly
The National Assembly (french: link=no, italics=set, Assemblée nationale; ) is the lower house of the bicameral French Parliament under the Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known a ...
and the French Senate
The Senate (french: Sénat, ) is the upper house of the French Parliament, with the lower house being the National Assembly (France), National Assembly, the two houses constituting the legislature of France. The French Senate is made up of 34 ...
to adopt the Agreement, the approval by the French Constitutional Council
The Constitutional Council (french: Conseil constitutionnel; ) is the highest constitutional authority in France. It was established by the Constitution of the Fifth Republic on 4 October 1958 to ensure that constitutional principles and rules ...
, the announcement in August 2007 by the new Prime Minister François Fillon
François Charles Armand Fillon (; born 4 March 1954) is a retired French politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 2007 to 2012 under President Nicolas Sarkozy. He was the nominee of the Republicans (previously known as the Union ...
that the London Agreement would soon be ratified, the approval by the French Council of Ministers
A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...
,[ "''Le projet de ratification du protocole de Londres sur les brevets européens a été approuvé vendredi par le Conseil des ministres...''" and "''En attendant, le gouvernement doit préciser la date à laquelle il soumettra le texte au vote du Parlement. Une fois voté, il sera alors officiellement ratifié par la France et le protocole de Londres entrera en vigueur.''" in Frank Niedercorn]
''Les industriels saluent la volonté du gouvernement de ratifier l'accord de Londres''
'' Les Echos'', 27 August 2007. and eventually the adoption by the National Assembly and the Senate of the ratification act on 26 September 2007 and on 9 October 2007 respectively.[ EPO web site]
''L'Accord de Londres approuvé par le Parlement français''
10 October 2007.
Notes
References
External links
on the European Patent Office
The European Patent Office (EPO) is one of the two organs of the European Patent Organisation (EPOrg), the other being the Administrative Council. The EPO acts as executive body for the organisation website
London Agreement
on the UK Intellectual Property Office
The Intellectual Property Office of the United Kingdom (often referred to as the UK IPO) is, since 2 April 2007, the operating name of The Patent Office. It is the official government body responsible for intellectual property rights in the UK ...
web site
London Agreement
at the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property
The Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property ( French: ''Institut fédéral de la propriété intellectuelle'', IPI; German: ''Eidgenössisches Institut für Geistiges Eigentum'', IGE; Italian: ''Istituto federale della proprietà intelle ...
London Agreement
at the Danish Patent and Trademark Office
The London Agreement. UK Patent Office Consultation.
(pdf) drafted by the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys
The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) is the British professional body of patent attorneys.
History
The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) was founded in 1882 as the ''Chartered Institute of Patent Agents'' and incorpor ...
(CIPA)
{{European Patent Organisation
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