THE LITIGATION 'industry' that's based in Europe (or has branches in Europe) is keen to destroy science and technology in Europe. Guess whose side Battistelli's EPO management is taking. Considering Battistelli's professional background, this isn't exactly surprising and his successor is a banker/lawyer (son of a politician like Battistelli), which means not much prospect for hope. Forget about scientists like Alain Pompidou, who have reason and some compassion. Like Battistelli and Campinos he is French, but at least he's also a renowned scientist in his discipline.
"The EPO nearly had a judge as its next President, but Battistelli lobbied against him. Battistelli virtually 'installed' Campinos."Troubling times are ahead because other than rumours of layoffs at the EPO (up to 15% of staff) judges say that they lost their independence. Battistelli and the law firms can simply manipulate them, e.g. impact their judgment by threat of contract being terminated (or not renewed). Those same issues were recently brought/raised against the UPC in a Constitutional complaint, which is to be dealt with at a high German court (FCC). Yes, by actual judges, not clumsy politicians who sign 'encyclopedias' of papers they never even bothered reading (that's what UPCA is).
It's very disturbing to see how UPCA got as far as it has. With a 2AM vote by 5% of politicians. It's an insult to European democracy and it damages the reputation of the European Union. Citizens weren't being consulted, many warnings were nonchalantly ignored, and lawyers basically wrote the laws from which they sought to benefit financially. Separation of authority/power was rendered totally farcical. It's like letting oil companies, not just their lobbyists, literally write the regulatory laws governing and administring pollution. There should have been protests in streets all across Europe (over the UPCA), but because Team UPC kept much of it cryptic, told lies about it and heavily relied on the public's lack of comprehension of patent matters, this did not happen.
"It's very disturbing to see how UPCA got as far as it has.""How come UPC is dead," someone asked me today. "Brexit or Court reasons?
I said "both, plus EPO scandals..."
The most relevant EPO scandal is a strand of issues pertaining to independence of judges.
Team UPC is not giving up just yet. We did not expect it to, having witnessed its sheer dishonesty for over half a decade.
"Just accept that UPC is dead and the Tories won't say it out loud," I told one of them, as the Tories (Conservative Party in the UK) "just drop clues and cancel sessions about Unitary Patent" (they have repeatedly done so and Team UPC just chose to hide it).
"Little surprisingly," said this person from Team UPC. "the Draft Withdrawal Agrmt presented by the EC today does not contain a single reference to patents, let alone the UPC. Other IPRs dealt w in Artt. 50 et seq. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/draft_withdrawal_agreement.pdf …"
"The most relevant EPO scandal is a strand of issues pertaining to independence of judges."Yes, so?
Is anyone surprised?
Alan Johnson (no connection to Jo or Boris Johnson) from Bristows (the most prolific/chronic liars among Team UPC) has started to really nag/pressure Sam Gyimah, successor of Jo Johnson, Boris Johnson's brother. In spite of actual British businesses opposing the UPC (because Unitary Patent is just a litigation mess lawyers and patent trolls expect to profit from), he goes ahead with the misleading headline "UK industry urges government to ratify UPC Agreement" (false, they're not what he claims them to be).
Ignore them. They're a malicious bunch and they keep disseminating lies. The body does not match the headline, either.
To quote Alan Johnson: "The IP Federation (which represents the views of UK industry in IP matters) has reported here that its President, James Horgan, wrote to Sam Gyimah MP, the UK minister for intellectual property, yesterday about the UK’s ratification of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) Agreement. "
"Team UPC is not giving up just yet."See how he constructed fake news right there? IP Federation is a front group for patents, so in the body he said "views of UK industry in IP matters" (also false) and then in the headline just "UK industry" -- a fake claim then repeated in Twitter. This is typical Bristows. And later they wonder why they receive so much flak?
This is a lie from Alan Johnson because actual UK industry opposes UPC. Lying lawyers pretend to be speaking 'for' such industry and they're bringing these lies to MP Gyimah, who might actually fall for these lies because he's new on the job. "UK industry urges government to ratify UPC Agreement," they wrote in Twitter. "The IP Federation reports that its President wrote to Sam Gyimah MP..."
Calling "IP Federation" the "UK industry" is like calling B52 bombers "the peace council".
"Calling "IP Federation" the "UK industry" is like calling B52 bombers "the peace council".""Watch out," I told Gyimah, as Team UPC "is lying to you, as usual. They themselves wrote the 'law' which they now lie to politicians about. Huge scam."
Dimitris Xenosââ¬Â, who is familiar with these things, also spotted the lie from Bristows and wrote: "Re: 'UK industry' term - the list of IP fed members is short and, clearly, Siemens, Pfizer, IBM, Ford, ExxonMobil, Uniliver, Nokia, Merk, Ericson, Eli Lilly, cannot be classified as 'UK industry'. That's why you have @schestowitz complaining frequently about your #upc propaganda..."
Those are primarily non-European companies and what many have in common is that they sue a lot. They sue internationally.
What do they have in common here? Lawyers. And Bristows (the worst of liars, with a long track record at that) try to paint them as "UK industry". These people have no sense of shame whatsoever.
"Those are primarily non-European companies and what many have in common is that they sue a lot. They sue internationally."Max Walters wrote: "Interesting development in efforts to get #UPC approved. Understand @ipfederation has also made similar request."
Similar to this one which he wrote about.
IP Federation isn't joined by actual UK industry but by a patent court's president. So what we see here is lobbying for litigation by patent courts and lawyers who want to make Britain a litigation nightmare for them to profit from. British businesses oppose this of course, but they aren't being listened to. Here is what Walters wrote:
The president of The Law Society has today urged the government to ratify the EU-focussed Unified Patent Court (UPC) agreement by the end of next month before ‘transitional arrangements’ for Brexit are finalised.
In a letter to intellectual property minister Sam Gyimah, Joe Egan said that if ratification is not completed by 23 March there is a risk that other EU member states will implement the UPC without the UK.
"How long before this UPC spin gets posted by them anonymously in Kluwer Patent Blog and IP Kat too?"Max Walters has meanwhile noted this new article titled "Government cannot accept Brexit deal that keeps UK under jurisdiction of European Court of Justice, warns Boris Johnson" (from the ToryGraph, a Tories-leaning British newspaper).
Walters then asked a somewhat rhetorical question: "Percentage chance of Boris signing off formal approval of the UPC agreement?"
"It's just what we expect to hear from a group that labels UPC opponents "idiots" and "trolls"."Watch the spin from Team UPC, e.g. [1, 2]. It's just what we expect to hear from a group that labels UPC opponents "idiots" and "trolls". The rational people, the sceptics, are being insulted, whereas the extremists who are motivated purely by profit think so very highly of themselves. It's a very small group which does not like what Johnson is saying and not because he's wrong or anything but because it affects them financially (personally)
Max Walters is the latest journalist to write an article about the German Constitutional complaint, but it understates the trouble/abyss to which UPC has sunk and quotes a liar from a liars firm known as Bristows (they try to attract business using these lies). Bristows is proud to have interjected its staff into this article. To quote:
Germany’s federal constitutional court, the Bundesverfassungsgericht (BverfG), said last week that it will decide on a challenge to the proposed Unified Patent Court (UPC) this year. However, the BverfG has not provided a firm time frame for hearing the case. The news puts the UPC project in doubt, as German and UK ratification is required before the agreement can be formally implemented.
"Court rulings in a language the defendant does not even comprehend have highly questionable legitimacy if any legitimacy at all."William New wrote about ALLEA yesterday. He said: "A high-level group of academic experts in intellectual property rights and innovation in the European Union has released a statement highlighting the rise in inventions due to international research and development and says EU regulations on inventorship, assignment and patent filing should be assessed for harmonisation and reducing complexity."
Assignment and filing, not litigation. Court rulings in a language the defendant does not even comprehend have highly questionable legitimacy if any legitimacy at all. It's one among many reasons the UPC will soon be forgotten about and buried even by Team UPC. ⬆