Germany: Arbitration & Dispute Resolution

The Munich Central Division of the Unified Patent Court addressed critical procedural and substantive questions in a revocation action concerning European Patent EP 4 226 039. The court examined the burden of proof required to establish lack of entitlement under Art. 138(1)(e) EPC, the court's discretion to assess dependent claims in stand-alone revocation proceedings, and the evidentiary value of Wayback Machine screenshots for proving public availability of online prior art.

The Local Division Düsseldorf of the Unified Patent Court addresses parallel infringement and revocation proceedings involving dental implant technology patent EP 3 402 420 B1. The case involves Versah LLC asserting patent rights against multiple defendants across nine European jurisdictions, with one defendant withdrawing following settlement while others continue to contest both infringement claims and patent validity.

The Hamburg Local Division of the Unified Patent Court addresses whether patent holders must assert all potentially infringed patents in a single preliminary measures application, or if they may pursue separate proceedings. The decision clarifies the scope of due diligence obligations when patent holders become aware of potential infringements and the strategic implications for enforcement actions.

The Local Division Düsseldorf of the Unified Patent Court has confirmed a settlement agreement between OTEC Präzisionsfinish GmbH and ANCA Europe GmbH concerning European Patent EP 2 983 864. This procedural confirmation follows Rule 365(1) Sentence 2 of the Rules of Procedure, marking the formal conclusion of the dispute between the parties.

The Local Division Düsseldorf of the Unified Patent Court addresses a request for file inspection in a patent dispute between Franz Kaldewei GmbH & Co. KG and Bette GmbH & Co. KG. The case involves European Patent EP 3 375 337 B1 and procedural matters under Rule 262.1(b) of the Rules of Procedure.

The Local Division Munich reviews a confidentiality order in patent infringement proceedings between CA, Inc. and Deutsche Telekom entities concerning EP 1 955 151. The case involves complex procedural questions under the Unified Patent Court Rules of Procedure regarding confidentiality protections and access to sensitive information in parallel infringement and revocation actions.

The Düsseldorf Local Division of the Unified Patent Court has adopted The Hague's four-step equivalence test in a patent dispute between Wonderland Nurserygoods and Cybex.

A German court's landmark decision in the European bathroom fittings cartel case has established a five-step framework for estimating cartel damages, with particular emphasis on using economic simulation models to assess pass-through rates to indirect purchasers. This analysis explores how these models address the fundamental challenge of reconstructing unobservable counterfactual market conditions and demonstrates their practical applicability in litigation.

The UPC Court of Appeal addresses a procedural application under Rule 262A of the Rules of Procedure in a patent dispute between SharkNinja Operating LLC and multiple Groupe SEB entities concerning European Patent EP 3 689 198.