Press Release, May 16, 2023
Europe is preparing for the Unified Patent Court (UPC): When it starts work on 1 June, it will further unite the member states participating in the UPC system through compliant rules and help to reduce barriers to trade in the European Union. This form of cohesion and desire for international cooperation is reflected in the European Patent Litigators Network (EPLN), which the two IP law firms Meissner Bolte (Germany) and Santarelli Group (France) founded in February. With the renowned sister firms SIB (Società Italiana Brevetti) and SIB LEX società tra avvocati from Italy, two more strong partners have now joined the network. Together, the four law firms will now line up for their cases before the UPC.
“The EPLN bundles the expertise of internationally important IP law firms from the most important EU states with regard to the filing, protection and enforcement of patents,” says Kay Rupprecht, Partner of Meissner Bolte and Director of Meissner Bolte (UK) Ltd. “We are very pleased to be able to inspire SIB and SIB LEX to join our network and thus to have two outstanding Italian law firms at our side. In addition, with the “Descrizione”, Italy has long-established inspection and evidence preservation tools in its legal system, which offer the EPLN exciting opportunities for action through the cooperation with SIB and SIB LEX. They will optimally complement the French inspection and evidence procedure “Saisie Contrefaçon” as well as the almost identical UPC procedures.”
SIB LEX has offices in Rome and Milan and can rely on partners with more than 30 years of experience. In addition to Rome and Milan, SIB is also represented in Florence and Verona. The two firms’ team of more than 45 patent attorneys and lawyers advises on all aspects of Intellectual Property, focusing in particular on complex pan-European litigation relating to patents, also standard essential and utility models. SIB and SIB LEX partners have been awarded in the recent years as Litigation and Prosecution IP Stars.
“We have worked with both Meissner Bolte and Santarelli Group in the past. In doing so, we have found that we all share the same professionalism and expertise at the highest level and are therefore an excellent fit. The EPLN will provide clients with country-specific expertise, resources and tailored solutions across national borders. With this partnership, we strengthen our lawyers’ position before the UPC and thus also the position of our clients,” says Jacopo De Benedetti, Managing Partner at SIB.
The EPLN makes it possible to advise and represent the clients of the respective law firms in cases before the UPC even more comprehensively and at the same time more cost-efficiently. The international orientation ensures that the lawyers have a wide range of remedies at their disposal to achieve the best results for their clients.
“With our network, we focus on quality and the experience of the individual members in cases within their country. We will support each other in different areas, including collecting and securing evidence, conducting investigations, obtaining proof of purchase or organising seizures. In doing so, we can also learn more about the procedures in the other countries and thus each law firm can generate even more added value for itself,” says Christophe Cornuejols, Managing Partner of the Santarelli Group.
As we wait for the UPC, that begins operations on 1st June, to start issuing decisions on infringement and validity of unitary and European patents for all 17 initially participating states of the European Union, the EPLN is to grow once again. Talks about another international partner are already under way.
Further information can be found at https://epln.com/.
Press contacts:
Meissner Bolte
GCI Germany
Philipp Schnorbus
M: +49.173.731.0373
[email protected]
www.gcigermany.com
Santarelli Group
[email protected]
Marie-Odile Gay // Matthieu Alhuraish
M : +33.6.63.79.70.72
M : +33.6.71.67.81.65
SIB & SIB LEX
Laura Ercoli
[email protected]
[email protected]
P: +39 06 695441
About Meissner Bolte
Meissner Bolte is a full-service IP law firm offering prosecution and litigation of patents, trademarks and designs. With eleven offices in Germany and one in the United Kingdom, our team of more than 60 patent attorneys and 20 attorneys-at-law and a total of 320 employees advises our clients from various industries. We process more than 2,000 patent applications per year and are one of the leading representatives for trademarks and designs at the EUIPO. With 50 percent domestic and 50 percent international clients, we are the largest IP law firm in Germany for national clients. Our expertise covers all industries with a focus on the automotive and medical technology sectors as well as specialist departments for computer-implemented inventions and chemistry and life science.
About Santarelli Group
Resulting from several mergers of firms since 1852, notably the merger of three French firms (Ipside Santarelli and Brevalex) in 2021, Santarelli Group is one of the leading French IP firms providing services from prosecution to litigation, in patents, trademarks and designs. Located in 18 offices in France and China, our 110 French and European Patent and Trademark attorneys and our 7 attorneys-at-law assist our clients in numerous technological fields and provide tailor-made support, on the technical, legal and strategic aspects. We process approximately 1500 new patent filings per year, with one of the highest delivery rates. Our trademark department is proud to manage worldwide trademark portfolios of the major players in several industries such as luxury, hotel, leisure. They deal with over 2000 oppositions per year.
About SIB and SIB LEX
SIB is an internationally recognised intellectual property firm specialising in the protection and enforcement of patents, trademarks, models, designs and copyrights. We aim to help clients manage their intellectual property rights according to their business priorities, extracting the maximum value from investments in creativity, innovation and trademarks. Our professional staff includes qualified Italian and European patent attorneys/European patent litigators with specialisations in all main technical areas, as well as qualified trademark attorneys and intellectual property law experts. Our clients include enterprises of all sizes, from start-up to corporate, as well as universities/research centres and foreign associates.
SIB LEX is a law firm focused on intellectual property in all its aspects, and specifically in assisting clients in complex pan-European patent disputes, including standard essential patents. We serve a clientele of Italian and multinational companies, small and medium-sized enterprises, and large enterprises operating in highly specialized sectors or related to products or services for mass consumption, fashion, design, electronics, mechanics, pharmaceuticals, biotech, and others.