Consistently ranked as the world’s most innovative economy by the World Intellectual Property Organization, Switzerland continues to be an attractive choice for those seeking to protect emerging technologies. Local practitioners observed more activity in arbitration and with commercial assignments. In its annual report, the Federal Patent Court noted a slight...
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Consistently ranked as the world’s most innovative economy by the World Intellectual Property Organization, Switzerland continues to be an attractive choice for those seeking to protect emerging technologies. Local practitioners observed more activity in arbitration and with commercial assignments. In its annual report, the Federal Patent Court noted a slight decrease in the number of incoming cases and main proceedings, but an increase in summary proceedings. Seeking to be more in line with international systems, the Swiss Patent Act minimises costs and legal uncertainty with regards to the validity of technical applications. SMEs benefit from the transparency that this reform has brought during the early-stage assessments phase. It has enabled them to utilise the published results to estimate the eligibility of their inventions for patent protection. Changes will also be implemented in the appeal procedures before the court to further strengthen its system and offer a more seamless service to practitioners and rights holders.
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