The Unified Patent Court’s long-arm jurisdiction
by Mario Pozzi, Partner and Francesca Belloni, Trainee lawyer
A string of decisions since early 2025 has transformed the Unified Patent Court into a global litigation forum.
What has become increasingly clear over the past eighteen months is that the UPC’s jurisdiction extends well beyond Europe’s borders. Through a series of landmark decisions—beginning with the CJEU’s pivotal ruling in BSH Hausgeräte v. Electrolux (February 2025) and swiftly followed by several UPC local divisions—the Court has established itself as a genuinely far-reaching litigation forum.
The UPC can now adjudicate patent infringement claims against companies domiciled outside the EU and the UPC contracting member states, provided that sufficient connecting factors exist, such as the presence of co-defendants or related activities within the UPC territory.