The Unified Patent Court (UPC) has been in existence for almost 18 months and use of the court and case law is starting to build. We are delighted to announce that we will be running a series of regular webinars dedicated to analysing the court’s decisions, providing you with the most up to date observations and analysis.

Speakers

Partner Rachel Bateman’s portfolio covers a wide range of chemical subject-matter. Her work includes drafting patent applications, coordinating multi-territory prosecution, handling EPO opposition and appeal cases, as well as preparing freedom-to-operate opinions for pharma generics or innovators. She has an enviable reputation for contentious work and has had numerous successes before the European Patent Office's Opposition Divisions and Appeal Boards, including significant cases in the areas of fuel additives, food technology and pharmaceuticals. Rachel has written and spoken extensively on the subject of the UPC and its impact on clients’ strategic plans, including contributions to The Financial Times and Managing IP Magazine.

With over twenty years of experience as a patent attorney, and in-house experience as patent counsel in the pharmaceutical industry, partner Lawrence King is an adept manager of complex, high-value pharma patent cases, with which opposition proceedings and/or parallel litigation are associated. Lawrence works with a broad spectrum of clients within the fields of agrochemicals, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, polymers, and petroleum technologies. His experience in drafting and prosecuting patent applications before the European Patent Office gives him a strong foundation for representing clients at the UPC, before which he has been a registered representative since its inception in 2023.

As a Chartered (UK) and European Patent Attorney, and representative before the UPC, associate Samuel Keyes' practice spans patent drafting, prosecution, and preparation of infringement and validity opinions, with a particular focus on conducting oppositions (including appeals) before the EPO. Having entered the patent profession from a career in academic research, he now represent clients in the engineering, physics, and computer-science sectors, with particular experience in 4G/5G telecommunications, medical devices, and digital image analysis. Sam has spent five years splitting his time between private practice and a secondment advising on freedom to operate (FTO) matters for the in-house patent department of a FTSE 100 company, providing insight into practice on both sides of the sector. Having acted as a representative in opposition of European patents which are the subject of parallel revocation proceedings before the UPC, the interplay of the EPO and UPC is a subject of particular interest, on which Sam has both written and presented.

System requirements

To view our webinars we recommend the following internet browsers:

• Google Chrome (most recent 2 versions).
• Mozilla Firefox (most recent 2 versions).
• Apple Safari (most recent 2 versions).
• Microsoft Edge (most recent 2 versions).