Single Market News. No 22. July 2000

On 5.7.00 the European Commission proposed the creation of a Community Patent to give inventors the option of obtaining a single patent legally valid throughout the European Union. The Lisbon and Feira European Councils cited the creation of a Community Patent as an essential part of Europe's efforts to harness the results of research to new scientific and technological developments and so contribute to ensuring a competitive, knowledge-based economy in Europe. The Summits recommended that the Community Patent should be available by the end of 2001.