"Since the update provided to the Competiveness Council at its last meeting in December 2013, the Preparatory Committee has:
– Received an expression of interest from 1300 candidate judges (both for legally and technically qualified judges) and organised a pre-selection process
– Set out the basic principles for the framework for the training of candidate judges
– Opened the Training Centre for the Unified Patent Court in Budapest, as the first organ of the UPC
– Published a brochure aimed at SME’s to raise awareness of the European Patent Package and its benefits
4 Document 15819/13
– Published the 16th draft of the Rules of Procedure for the Unified Patent Court, along with a digest of the comments that were received in the written consultation on the preceding 15th draft of the said Rules
– Published an interpretative note on the UPC website to assist users with developing a better understanding of the Preparatory Committee’s positions
– Commenced appointment of specialists in IT procurement to compile the necessary specification for a call for tender for the UPC’s future electronic filing and case management system
– Agreed and circulated a recommendation for minimum specification for facilities arrangements
– Agreed to admit Croatia as observers to the Preparatory Committee
In a number of Member States the ratification process under their national constitutional law or practice requires elaborate procedures including accompanying legislative procedures. Several Signatory States have nevertheless completed their ratification process including Austria and France. In Malta and Belgium the ratification has been approved by the national Parliament. In other Signatory States such as the UK, Sweden and Slovenia the national process is well under way.
On the 4 March 2014 in the margins of the JHA Council Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Sweden concluded the first regional agreement on the creation of a regional Nordic-Baltic division of the Unified Patent Court."
Lees het progress report hier.