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Unified Patent Court Agreement (UPCA)

PART I – GENERAL AND INSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS

CHAPTER I – GENERAL PROVISIONS

ARTICLE 1 - Unified Patent Court

ARTICLE 2 - Definitions

ARTICLE 3 - Scope of application

ARTICLE 4 - Legal status

ARTICLE 5 - Liability

CHAPTER II – INSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS

ARTICLE 6 - The Court

ARTICLE 7 - The Court of First Instance

ARTICLE 8 - Composition of the panels of the Court of First Instance

ARTICLE 9 - The Court of Appeal

ARTICLE 10 - The Registry

ARTICLE 11 - Committees

ARTICLE 12 - The Administrative Committee

ARTICLE 13 - The Budget Committee

ARTICLE 14 - The Advisory Committee

CHAPTER III – JUDGES OF THE COURT

ARTICLE 15 - Eligibility criteria for the appointment of judges

ARTICLE 16 - Appointment procedure

ARTICLE 17 - Judicial independence and impartiality

ARTICLE 18 - Pool of Judges

ARTICLE 19 - Training framework

CHAPTER IV – THE PRIMACY OF UNION LAW, LIABILITY AND RESPONSIBILITY OF THE CONTRACTING MEMBER STATES

ARTICLE 20 - Primacy of and respect for Union law

ARTICLE 21 - Requests for preliminary rulings

ARTICLE 22 - Liability for damage caused by infringements of Union law

ARTICLE 23 - Responsibility of the Contracting Member States

CHAPTER V – SOURCES OF LAW AND SUBSTANTIVE LAW

ARTICLE 24 - Sources of law

ARTICLE 25 - Right to prevent the direct use of the invention

ARTICLE 26 - Right to prevent the indirect use of the invention

ARTICLE 27 - Limitations of the effects of a patent

ARTICLE 28 - Right based on prior use of the invention

ARTICLE 29 - Exhaustion of the rights conferred by a European patent

ARTICLE 30 - Effects of supplementary protection certificates

CHAPTER VI – INTERNATIONAL JURISDICTION AND COMPETENCE

ARTICLE 31 - International jurisdiction

ARTICLE 32 - Competence of the Court

ARTICLE 33 - Competence of the divisions of the Court of First Instance

ARTICLE 34 - Territorial scope of decisions

CHAPTER VII – PATENT MEDIATION AND ARBITRATION

ARTICLE 35 - Patent mediation and arbitration centre

PART II – FINANCIAL PROVISIONS

ARTICLE 36 - Budget of the Court

ARTICLE 37 - Financing of the Court

ARTICLE 38 - Financing of the training framework for judges

ARTICLE 39 - Financing of the Centre

PART III – ORGANISATION AND PROCEDURAL PROVISIONS

CHAPTER I – GENERAL PROVISIONS

ARTICLE 40 - Statute

ARTICLE 41 - Rules of Procedure

ARTICLE 42 - Proportionality and fairness

ARTICLE 43 - Case management

ARTICLE 44 - Electronic procedures

ARTICLE 45 - Public proceedings

ARTICLE 46 - Legal capacity

ARTICLE 47 - Parties

ARTICLE 48 - Representation

CHAPTER II – LANGUAGE OF PROCEEDINGS

ARTICLE 49 - Language of proceedings at the Court of First Instance

ARTICLE 50 - Language of proceedings at the Court of Appeal

ARTICLE 51 - Other language arrangements

CHAPTER III – PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE COURT

ARTICLE 52 - Written, interim and oral procedures

ARTICLE 53 - Means of evidence

ARTICLE 54 - Burden of proof

ARTICLE 55 - Reversal of burden of proof

CHAPTER IV – POWERS OF THE COURT

ARTICLE 56 - The general powers of the Court

ARTICLE 57 - Court experts

ARTICLE 58 - Protection of confidential information

ARTICLE 59 - Order to produce evidence

ARTICLE 60 - Order to preserve evidence and to inspect premises

ARTICLE 61 - Freezing orders

ARTICLE 62 - Provisional and protective measures

ARTICLE 63 - Permanent injunctions

ARTICLE 64 - Corrective measures in infringement proceedings

ARTICLE 65 - Decision on the validity of a patent

ARTICLE 66 - Powers of the Court concerning decisions of the European Patent Office

ARTICLE 67 - Power to order the communication of information

ARTICLE 68 - Award of damages

ARTICLE 69 - Legal costs

ARTICLE 70 - Court fees

ARTICLE 71 - Legal aid

ARTICLE 72 - Period of limitation

CHAPTER V – APPEALS

ARTICLE 73 - Appeal

ARTICLE 74 - Effects of an appeal

ARTICLE 75 - Decision on appeal and referral back

CHAPTER VI - DECISIONS

ARTICLE 76 - Basis for decisions and right to be heard

ARTICLE 77 - Formal requirements

ARTICLE 78 - Decisions of the Court and dissenting opinions

ARTICLE 79 - Settlement

ARTICLE 80 - Publication of decisions

ARTICLE 81 - Rehearing

ARTICLE 82 - Enforcement of decisions and orders

PART IV – TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS

ARTICLE 83 - Transitional regime

PART V – FINAL PROVISIONS

ARTICLE 84 - Signature, ratification and accession

ARTICLE 85 - Functions of the depositary

ARTICLE 86 - Duration of the Agreement

ARTICLE 87 - Revision

ARTICLE 88 - Languages of the Agreement

ARTICLE 89 - Entry into force