Steen Wadskov-Hansen, CEO and partner at Budde Schou has recently been appointed judge with the European Unified Patent Court.
Following year-long preparations the European Unified Patent Court became a reality in the beginning of 2022. The new court is a reinforced collaboration under EU, and to start it counts a total of 17 member states. After its forming, an extensive recruitment process began in which, among other matters, about 50 technically qualified judges had to be appointed.
One of the newly appointed technical judges is Danish Steen Wadskov-Hansen, who is CEO and partner at Budde Schou. He assumes the position as technical judge within the fields of Chemistry and Pharmaceuticals.
– For many years patent rights within the framework of the EU have not been handled uniformly, and if you put it bluntly, you may say that no basis for a unified market ever really existed, as fighting over patents have been settled differently within the different countries. Fortunately, the EU has done away with it now, which is a very positive development that benefits many companies, says Steen Wadskov-Hansen, and further elaborates:
– Generally speaking, patent litigations are quite expensive if held separately in 20 countries. The new collaboration makes it more attractive for both large and small companies to either enforce their own or nullify others’ patents, as it is concluded in one place. Therefore, the European Unified Patent Court will undoubtedly be favorable commercially and competitively for many.
Personal Priorities
Prior to his accession Steen Wadskov-Hansen has already defined certain areas on which he wants to apply a certain focus.
– I approach the work humbly, however, one thing is certain: I will work hard to ensure a high level of quality in the work to ensure people can always trust our decisions. In addition, I would like to focus even more on how patent rights must necessarily interact with other commercial framework conditions and the life of the individual, as well as how patent rights are brought into play corresponding to society and the individual relative to for instance the approach to new pharmaceuticals, states Steen Wadskov-Hansen.
