Seanad candidate backs referendum on new European patent court

Donnacha Curley, an independent Seanad Éireann candidate on the industrial and commercial panel, has called for a constitutional referendum on joining the EU’s Unified Patent Court.

Mr Curley is a European patent attorney with nearly 20 years’ experience and has been nominated for the Seanad by the Association of Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys (APTMA).

He said the new European patent system, which is in an advanced stage of adoption, would be “less expensive with simpler court procedures” in comparison to the existing European patent system.

He added: “The new Patent offers the potential for a dramatic reduction in cost for Irish companies at a time when growth of Irish businesses, capable of operating on a national and international scale, is essential.

“If Ireland is to lead the way in research and innovation, then Ireland needs to provide a way for Irish companies to protect their resulting inventions at a reasonable cost.

“The new Patent will provide Irish companies with significant lower costs both in obtaining patents and then enforcing them against infringers.

“Currently, legal fees in Ireland for enforcing a patent are amongst the highest in Europe with corresponding fees in Germany being approximately 70-80 per cent less. The new specialist patent court is expected to result in fees at a level close to those in Germany.”

The EU’s Agreement on a Unified Patent Court has been signed by all EU member states and ratified by Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Sweden and Finland.

It will come into force once 13 countries - including France, the UK and Germany - have ratified it.

A referendum on the unified court was held in Denmark in 2014 and was approved by 62 per cent of voters on a 56 per cent turnout.

Mr Curley said: “Ireland has been slow in the past to join such agreements, with Ireland delaying 15 years before joining the current European system after the referendum on Maastricht in 1992 which contained a provision on community patents.

“This delay placed Irish companies at a significant disadvantage to their European counterparts.

“Only one other country, Denmark, required a referendum to join the new system which was passed in May 2014 with 62.5% in favour. How long will Ireland wait?”