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J A Kemp LLP continues to provide a full service to all clients, operating within the guidelines issued by European governments. The firm’s attorneys and the colleagues supporting them are working remotely. As far as possible, please use email to contact the firm and, in particular, to issue any instructions.

Click here for information on how disruption caused by the coronavirus situation may affect your intellectual property rights.

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News

30 July 2020

J A Kemp to Move its London Office to New Premises

J A Kemp will move its London office to new, modern premises early in 2021. The new office will be located in Turnmill St, at the heart of the thriving business district of Farringdon. The centrally located office will be close to both the Underground network and the new Elizabeth Line, with excellent connections across London. J A Kemp will occupy several floors of a fully refurbished building known as “The Stills”. The firm expects the building to serve as a high quality home for its London office for many years to come. The new premises will provide an attractive, modern...

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29 July 2020

EPO Postpones all Opposition Division Oral Proceedings for the Remainder of 2020

The EPO has announced today that all opposition division oral proceedings scheduled to take place in 2020 are being postponed. There remains the option for opposition division oral proceedings to take place by videoconference under the EPO’s pilot project (see our briefing on videoconference oral proceedings here), but only with the consent of all parties.  The EPO has not been conducting in person opposition division oral proceedings at its offices since March 2020, in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. The EPO had previously been hoping to resume in person opposition division oral proceedings from 15 September 2020, but has presumably now...

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29 July 2020

Measures Being Taken by EPO, EUIPO, WIPO and UK IPO in Relation to COVID-19 Pandemic

The European Patent Office (EPO), the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO), the International Bureau (IB) of WIPO and other intellectual property offices are taking measures in view of the world-wide COVID-19 pandemic. Measures Taken by the EPO The EPO has adopted a number of measures in view of the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. First, the EPO initially extended all “periods” expiring on or after 15 March 2020 until 2 June 2020 for all parties and their representatives, under the provisions of Rule 134(2) EPC, second sentence. In accordance with Article 150(2) EPC, this extension...

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20 July 2020

UK Withdraws from UPC Agreement

Further to a previous announcement that the UK government would not be seeking involvement in the UP/UPC system, the UK today announced its official withdrawal from the Unified Patent Court (UPC) Agreement. The UP/UPC system is an EU initiative to establish a Unitary Patent (UP) having unitary effect throughout the EU member states, and to establish the Unified Patent Court (UPC) to hear disputes relating to the Unitary Patent, and also relating to European patents having effect in the EU member states.   The UPC agreement was signed in 2013 and ratified by the UK on 26 April 2018 by Theresa May’s...

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10 July 2020

CJEU Overturns Neurim – no SPCs for New Therapeutic uses of Old Active Ingredients

The CJEU issued on 9 July 2020 its judgment in the Santen C-673/18 case.  The judgment , which is reviewed in more detail in our briefing ( here ), overturns the earlier Neurim decision and concludes that SPCs are not available for new therapeutic uses of old active ingredients.   If you have any concerns or queries about the impact of this decision please speak to your usual J A Kemp contact.

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19 June 2020

J A Kemp Ranked as a Leading Firm by IAM Patent 1000 2020

J A Kemp has once again been ranked as a leading patent prosecution firm in “IAM Patent 1000 - The World’s Leading Professionals 2020”. The directory comments: “J A Kemp retains its ‘first-class’ reputation this year thanks to its meticulous prosecution for household names across a range of sectors. With three UK offices and outposts in Paris and Munich, the firm is ideally placed to provide a joined-up service not only to clients from across the continent, but also to players from the United States and Japan seeking to protect their innovations in the region. It has a particular facility for...

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18 June 2020

J A Kemp Ranked as One of Europe’s Leading Patent Law Firms 2020 by Financial Times

The Financial Times has revealed the results of its 2020 survey of Europe’s patent law firms. This listing is based on recommendations by clients and peers, as compiled by the FT’s research partner Statista. A total of 160 recommended firms feature in the overall list. J A Kemp was ranked across all the main areas of patent technology: Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmaceuticals; Mechanical Engineering​ and Electrical Engineering, scooping a top tier gold for Biotechnology and Food. The full list is available here .

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16 June 2020

German Proposal to Proceed with UPCA Enactment a Second Time

As reported here, the German Constitutional Court ruled in March 2020 that the Bundestag did not effectively pass the Act of Approval of the Unified Patent Court Agreement (UPCA) rendering the Act of Approval void. The UP/UPC system is an EU initiative to establish a Unitary Patent (UP) having unitary effect throughout the EU member states, and to establish the Unified Patent Court (UPC) to hear disputes relating to the Unitary Patent, and also relating to European patents having effect in the EU member states. The German Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection has now issued a new draft UPCA approval proposal...

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5 June 2020

The EPO Abolishes the Option to Waive the Right to a Further Notice of Allowance When Filing Amendments/Corrections

The EPO has decided to abolish the option to waive the right to a further communication under Rule 71(3) EPC (notice of allowance) when filing amendments/corrections in response to an initial communication under Rule 71(3) EPC. The option was originally introduced by the EPO in 2015 in order to improve procedural efficiency. However, the EPO has found that applicants very rarely make use of the waiver procedure, and consequently the desired improvement in efficiency has not be realised. This simplification of the EPO’s grant procedure is likely to be welcomed by users of the European patent system. When the EPO intends...

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29 May 2020

EPO Temporarily Waives the 50% Surcharge for the Late Payment of Renewal Fees

In view of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the EPO has decided (see here and here) to introduce a temporary waiver of the additional fee payable when a renewal fee is paid late.  Usually, under Rule 51(2) EPC, if a renewal fee is not paid by the due date (which is the last day of the month containing the anniversary of the date of filing of the European patent application), then the renewal fee can be validly paid within six months of the due date provided that an additional fee of 50% of the renewal fee is also paid.  The EPO has decided...

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28 May 2020

Conducting Oral Proceedings at the European Patent Office by Videoconference

In view of worldwide travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the EPO has recently expanded its ability to conduct oral proceedings before examining divisions, opposition divisions and Boards of Appeal via videoconference, rather than at the offices of the EPO. This change in practice gives rise to a number of practical implications for users of the European patent system, which are discussed in our briefing here .

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28 May 2020

UK Court Shows Red Card to Sky in SkyKick Case

The High Court has issued its decision in the Sky v SkyKick case. The judgment follows the Advocate General’s Opinion and the Court of Justice of the European Union’s (CJEU) decision of 29 January 2020 on questions referred to it by the High Court regarding broad specifications of goods and services.  Read our analysis of the decision in this briefing .

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Why Choose Us?

We set great store by what our clients say about us. These comments are all from leading legal and IP directories or provided directly by our clients.

Managing Intellectual Property

J A Kemp was awarded "Best UK Patent Prosecution Firm" at the Managing Intellectual Property Awards 2020.

Chambers and Partners

 "J A Kemp demonstrates excellent technical prowess matched by legal sophistication. Unlike many other European patent attorneys, I view the partners there as collaborators rather than as service providers."

IAM Patent 1000

"Unified team culture, deep concentration of technical expertise and ability to effortlessly switch to another gear in times of extreme need.”

Managing Intellectual Property

“J A Kemp is second to none in my experience.”

Overseas Attorney Firm

"I don’t work with anyone as good.  I recommend J A Kemp because it’s good for my clients."

J A Kemp Client

"If I want an opinion I’ll go with J A Kemp."

Chambers and Partners

"They identify with our priorities, are immediately responsive and generate confidence in their technical ability."

World Trademark Review 1000

“A very sharp firm, nimble on its feet and able to really deliver, J A Kemp is timely, professional and excellent value for money.”

Managing Intellectual Property

"Clients are most impressed with the work of J A Kemp. The team are highly responsive, intensely hard-working, and uniformly thoughtful in their handling of prosecution and post-prosecution matters (e.g. oppositions). They are proactive and induce a high degree of confidence." 

IAM Patent 1000

"J A Kemp offers some of the finest patent services in Europe, delivers cast-iron protection for inventions of all types and conducts sterling opposition and appeal work at the EPO."

Chambers and Partners

"I am really impressed with them.  The team is very proactive, strategic and thinks about the best way to move forward."

The Legal 500

"J A Kemp’s team of trade mark attorneys are true experts and above all extremely commercial."  

IAM Patent 1000

"The whole team is extremely knowledgeable of the underlying subject matter and also of EU patent practice - they do a valuable analysis of the specifications to optimise the patent’s strength."

J A Kemp Client

"J A Kemp gives good, clear, commercial recommendations."

Overseas Attorney Firm

"J A Kemp is my preferred firm because the level of service and understanding of the client’s technology is great."

World Trademark Review 1000

J A Kemp is "a go-to for UK and European trademark matters – its expert practitioners provide practical advice quickly and for a fair price, and impress at every turn".

J A Kemp Client

"J A Kemp has a very 'can do' attitude for jobs which are complex."

Overseas Attorney Firm

"These are some of the most detailed and thorough instructions that I have ever seen. They evidence a keen understanding of US practice."

IAM Patent 1000

"J A Kemp is extremely knowledgeable and does a fantastic job."

Overseas Attorney Firm

"I cannot thank you enough for your expert advice and careful strategic thinking in this matter."

J A Kemp Client

"We want the best protection available and I give J A Kemp the highest marks possible."

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