Cost-effective European Patent Validations

Validation of European patents, after grant by the EPO, requires different steps to be taken in different countries. In particular some countries require a translation of all or part of the granted patent into their local language, whereas others do not.

Traditionally, validations have been handled by recruiting local agents in each country to attend to the requirements. As such, where translations were needed, the local agents would arrange for them, often using local translation firms, who in turn often use freelance translators. This can result in a lengthy chain of reporting (from the freelance translator to the local translation firm, to the local agent, to us, to you), which can be very inefficient as it can introduce delays and increase overall costs. The chain can also make it very difficult to accurately estimate costs before work is done. As a separate chain exists in each country requiring a translation, there is the potential for a loss of oversight unless strong efforts are made.

We can now offer our clients a better validation service based on an alternative model. Instead of relying exclusively on local agents to instruct and obtain translations as required, we have taken control of the translation provision in-house. J A Kemp thus provides a top-quality translation service and integrates it seamlessly with the validation provision. Our service charge for completing the validation in each country thus includes the cost of translation together with the cost of performing the validation acts so there are no disbursements for clients to pay.

Our service provides the following benefits:

• Accurate estimates are provided in advance¹
• Complete oversight of the process, as J A Kemp takes responsibility for all the translation work
• Economies of scale are exploited so that very cost effective prices can be offered to our clients
• Quality maintained or enhanced, compared to the traditional system, because we have more control over the translations made
• We use appropriately technically and linguistically qualified translators who are translating into their mother-tongue and the translations are always proof-checked by another qualified translator before being approved for use
• We work with respected local agents in each country, who are additionally able to attend to other post-grant services if desired, such as recording changes of ownership, paying renewal fees and attending to SPC applications
• The provision of a single all-inclusive invoice that covers the complete national validation in all countries

If you are interested in learning more about this service, please contact Mark Roberts or James Egleton.