This is a summary of developments in and around the Unified Patent Court (UPC) in the week since our March 1, 2026 UPC Roundup.
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6. Around the court
6.1 Amazon–InterDigital dispute exposes growing friction between UK courts and UPC
The High Court of Justice for England and Wales has issued a decision in the ongoing Amazon v. InterDigital dispute, addressing the interaction between the UK proceedings and parallel litigation before the UPC. In the ruling, Mr Justice Richard Meade stated that the conduct of the UPC’s Mannheim LD had produced an “unfair and unfortunate effect” on the UK proceedings and the efficient management of the UK litigation. The UK court held that Amazon’s “declaration” regarding its intended conduct in the UPC could not be legally enforced, thereby falling short of the procedural arrangement anticipated by the Mannheim LD. The decision also highlights an escalating jurisdictional conflict over the handling of global FRAND disputes involving standard-essential patents. While the UK court reiterated its willingness to de-escalate the situation, the order reveals growing friction between the English court and the UPC.
6.2 UPC announces judicial changes at CoA and CD Paris
The UPC has announced upcoming changes to the judicial composition of its CoA and the Paris seat of the Central Division (CD), effective April 1, 2026. The changes follow the retirement of CoA judge Emanuela Germano at the end of March 2026. The UPC Administrative Committee has appointed Paolo Catallozzi, currently a legally qualified judge at the CD Paris of the Court of First Instance (CFI), to succeed Germano at the CoA. To fill the resulting vacancy in CD Paris, the committee has appointed Vincenzo Carnì as a legally qualified judge. The presidents of the CoA and the CFI expressed their appreciation for Germano’s service and welcomed the appointments of Catallozzi and Carnì to their respective new roles.
6.3 UPC statistics show rising caseload and record early-2026 activity
The UPC continues to see strong and expanding use nearly three years after its launch, with more than 1,400 total filings recorded from June 2025 through February 28, 2026. This included 215 infringement complaints and 27 filings seeking provisional measures in the Court of First Instance (CFI). According to the court’s latest 13-page statistical analysis report, the CFI has received 1,130 filings since operations began in June 2023, and the CoA has received 321 filings. In the first two months of 2026 alone, the system recorded 72 new cases at the first-instance level and 34 at the appellate level, reflecting sustained engagement by litigants across Europe.
At the CFI, counterclaims for revocation and infringement actions accounted for the majority of new filings in early 2026, with 39 and 30 cases respectively. The Munich LD (127 cases), Dusseldorf LD (85 cases), and Mannheim LD (75) continue to dominate the court’s docket since June 2025, collectively handling most of the activity. The CD Milan recorded the UPC’s first and only standalone revocation action (Light Guide Optics International v. Biolitec Holding GmbH) . English remains the primary language of proceedings, representing 62.5% of first-instance cases, followed by German (34.72%) and French (2.78%). Patent disputes are concentrated largely in technology sectors, particularly electricity, human necessities, and physics.
Activity at the CoA has also accelerated as earlier cases move into the appellate phase. Of the 34 filings recorded in early 2026, the majority (29 filings) were substantive appeals against first-instance decisions. Comparative data from previous years shows steady growth in the volume of cases.