Yet another step has been made towards the entry into operation of the Unified Patent Court, with today’s rejection by the German Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) of the two applications for preliminary injunction against the ratification Bill of the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court. This ratification Bill was adopted by the German Parliament on 18 December 2020.

In the order published today, the Second Senate of the FCC not only rejected those two applications, but also stated in its reasoning that the constitutional complaints lodged in the principal proceedings are inadmissible as the complainants failed to sufficiently assert and substantiate a possible violation of their fundamental rights.

The Chairman of the Preparatory Committee welcomes this positive development, with the way now being cleared for Germany’s deposit of its ratification Bill.  In addition to this, in order for the project to move into its final phase, a further two Signatory States must agree to be bound by the Protocol on Provisional Application.

In the meantime, the work of the Preparatory Committee and its interim team continues. A timeline and a more detailed plan for the start and execution of the Provisional Application Period will be published in due course on this website.  

Here is the origional German Federal Constitutional Court order published the 9th July 2021.