Abstract
A rise in European Patent litigation has increased awareness of patent enforcement and its difficulty given the lack of harmony between the European Patent Convention (EPC) and the European Community (Community) patent laws. The EPC and the Community have both attempted to harmonize certain aspects of their patent laws. In 1999, the EPC Member States developed four options for structuring a European system of patent enforcement. In 2000, the Community developed its regulation system known as the Community Patent Regulation. The author believes that the two proposals are great attempts but fail to address two key aspects: (1) the allocation of rights between individuals; and (2) the allocation of public and private property. Dr. Heath discusses these two very important areas and their significance when attempting to harmonize the EPC and Community's patent laws.
Repository Citation
Christopher Heath,
Harmonizing Scope and Allocation of Patent Rights in Europe - Towards a New European Patent Law,
6 Marq. Intellectual Property L. Rev. 11
(2002).
Available at: https://scholarship.law.marquette.edu/iplr/vol6/iss1/2