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SMEs to benefit from intellectual property dispute reformation

Published on 18 Jan 2010 under category: legal

Small businesses could find it much cheaper to resolve intellectual property disputes, following a major legal review last week.

Lord Justice Jackson's Review of Litigation Costs has proposed a massive shake-up of the current system used in the Patents County Court.

Procedures will be geared towards helping small and medium sized enterprises find solutions within much shorter periods of time for lower costs. Court costs – recoverable from the other party - will be capped at £50,000 but companies will only be able to claim up to £500,000 in successful cases.

The review recommends that processes are simplified so that trials are limited to one to two days, held without extensive cross-examination and additional processes of disclosure, expert evidence and experiments avoided if possible.

According to the report's findings, a fast-track procedure should be instituted for very small claims so that small companies affected by minor copyright infringements or infringements for design rights do not become embroiled in lengthy court cases.

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