Background
Under Article 64(3) EPC, any infringement of a European patent is dealt with under national law. Additionally, once the 9 month opposition period under Article 99 EPC has expired, there is no centralised way of challenging the validity of a granted patent.
Furthermore, Council Regulation (EC) No 44/2001 "on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters" does not adequately deal with the particular complications thrown up by intellectual property disputes. Such disputes are typically based on parallel national rights rather than European-wide rights.
As a consequence, parties wishing to litigate a patent often find themselves in the unsatisfactory position of having to litigate as much about where and when disputes should be heard and decided as about the real underlying dispute.
Read more about this topic: European Patent Litigation Agreement
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