With negotiations over the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union still teetering on the edge, technical notices detailing preparations in the event of a deal not being reached have been published by the British Government.
The latest of these notices concerns issues surrounding Intellectual Property rights, and the proposed resolution to them.
According to Lexology, the key announcements in the context of No Deal concern the provision of a new right to replace unregistered Community design rights (to be known as “the supplementary unregistered design right”); in addition to this was the decision that existing EUTMs and Community registered designs will be replaced with new equivalent rights in the UK, following the culmination of the proposed transition period.
If the ongoing implementation of the Unified Patent Court comes into force before the UK has withdrawn from the EU, the British Government announced that it will replace any unitary patent rights with equivalent rights, if the nation is required to withdraw from the UPC simultaneously. However, the Government has said that it “intends to stay in the Unified Patent Court and unitary patent system after we leave the EU,” and “will explore whether it is possible to remain within it.”
Furthermore, UK-originating sui generis database rights will cease to be enforceable in the EEA (European Economic Area.) As a result, the Government has said that “UK owners may want to consider relying on other forms of protection (e.g. restrictive licensing agreements or copyright where applicable) for their databases.”
Additionally, the UK will “continue to accept the exhaustion of IP rights”, by or with the consent of the rights holder, in products put on the market in the EEA. Lexology speculates, however, that the EU will “likely not” consider that goods placed on the UK market are exhausted in the EEA, and as a result “permission may need to be sought from the rights holder to transfer goods, that have legitimately been put on the market in the UK, to the EEA. The Government added: “The UK looks forward to exploring arrangements on IP cooperation that will provide mutual benefits to UK and EU rights holders and we are ready to discuss issues the EU wishes to raise in the negotiations on our future relationship, including exhaustion of IP rights.”
For more information on what a No Deal Brexit could mean, make sure to read our feature on the possible implications, in Issue 311 of The Recycler, out now!
