This is a summary of developments in and around the Unified Patent Court (UPC) in the calendar week of May 25, 2026.
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11. Around the court
11.1 PMAC to officially launch in Ljubljana with UPC, EU, and EPO Leaders
(link to the PMAC linkedin post)
The Patent Mediation and Arbitration Centre (PMAC) will officially launch on June 2, 2026, in Ljubljana, following the inaugural PMAC Dispute Resolution Forum and Unified IP Summit. The ceremony will feature addresses from Slovenian President Nataša Pirc Musar, CJEU President Koen Lenaerts, UPC CoA President Klaus Grabinski, European Commissioner Michael McGrath, and EPO President António Campinos, alongside remarks from PMAC Director Aleš Zalar and UPC Administrative Committee Chair Johannes Karcher. The event marks the formal opening of PMAC and highlights its role in promoting intellectual property dispute resolution within the European patent ecosystem.
11.2 UPC panels should routinely disclose preliminary views at the start of hearings
This opinion piece argues that UPC panels should routinely disclose preliminary views at the outset of oral hearings because doing so would improve efficiency, predictability, and forum attractiveness. Early judicial guidance helps parties focus their arguments on the issues that matter most, assess settlement opportunities, prepare appellate strategies, and potentially shorten hearings. The piece contrasts divisions such as the Hague and certain German LDs, where judges often indicate areas requiring further persuasion, with others that traditionally reveal little about their thinking before hearing arguments. It suggests that such procedural differences may influence forum-selection decisions, particularly in high-value patent disputes.