Reform of the Patents County Court 
Developing a portfolio of intellectual property is hard work. Businesses expend significant resources, in time and money, developing these portfolios, and naturally feel aggrieved when their rights are not respected. Enforcement of IP rights can be an important business tool to protect the investment in an invention, a design or a brand identity.
A variety of options are possible for defending your IP rights, but the courts are the only authority that can grant an injunction to put a stop to an infringement. Litigation in the courts is often not the most attractive option because of the costs and uncertainty involved. However, a recent reform of the Patents County Court means that IP litigation may now be a more affordable and realistic option for small and medium sized companies.
Peter Arrowsmith, a patent attorney at Cleveland, explains.
If you discover that a competitor has been infringing your IP rights your most important first step should be to seek legal advice from your patent or trade mark attorney. We will want to look into the facts, provide advice on the strength of your case, and discuss options for putting a stop to the infringement. Generally we will look to open a dialogue with the infringer so that we can negotiate a positive outcome. This approach is often effective, but only because the infringer knows that you could enforce your rights in a court if they do not respond positively.
There are various forums for IP litigation in the UK, and the Patents County Court is intended to handle smaller, shorter, less complex cases covering the whole of IP (not just patents). In other words, the Patents County Court is intended as the IP forum for small and medium sized companies.
In recent years the Patents County Court has been the subject of criticism because it has failed to attract small businesses in good numbers. It is unlikely that this is because of a lack of potential cases. It seems more likely that the Court’s intended users have been deterred because of the potential cost of losing the case. In particular, users may have been deterred because the losing side in litigation needs to pay the winner back a portion of their legal costs, which may be substantial.
The Patents County Court has recently been revamped with new rules that are intended to provide access to justice for those with less deep pockets. A cap has been introduced so that the losing side would not need to pay more than £50,000 of the winning side’s legal costs. The procedure has also been streamlined in order to speed it up, and to engage the judge at an earlier stage in proceedings. Many of the new procedures appear to be based on those used at the European Patent Office, which are very familiar to patent attorneys in the UK.
Litigation is always the final option when dealing with an IP dispute, and it is usually possible to avoid it by talking to your patent or trade mark attorney at an early stage. It is positive, however, that the new rules will provide better certainty for businesses that are forced into litigation at the Patents County Court. It is hoped that these new rules will widen access to justice so that small and medium sized companies have an affordable forum for enforcing their IP rights.
Source: http://www.ipo.gov.uk/ipinsight-201103-2.htm
Related information: Mold County Court | Southend County Court
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