UPC_CFI_1470/2026 – Ferring v Accord

Court
Local Division The Hague
Date
Outcome
Granted
Sector
Pharma/Bio
Decision Type
PROCEDURAL

Expert Commentary

Infringement action / Alignment The JR At the request of the 7 defendants except defendant 6 who had not (yet) filed an appearance, the JR aligned the dates for the Preliminary Objection and Defence/Counterclaim for revocation for all defendants, under the reservation that defendant 6 was validly served on 18 May 2026 in accordance with R. 271.b RoP, which was quite likely. Comment In my opinion, this is a good example for a new Rule because it seems to be in everybody’s interest for the dates of multiple defendants to be synchronized. However, the formulation of such a Rule will need some careful consideration in order to avoid delays or delaying tactics!

Full Decision Text

1 The Hague - Local Division UPC-CFI-1470/2026 Procedural Order of the Court of First Instance of the Unified Patent Court delivered on 09/06/2026 Claimants 1) FERRING B.V. Represented by François Pochart Polaris avenue 144 2132 JX Hoofddorp The Netherlands 2) FERRING INTERNATIONAL CENTER S.A. Represented by François Pochart 50 Chemin de la Vergognausaz 1162 Saint-Prex Switzerland 3) FERRING PORTUGUESA – PRODUTOS Represented by François Pochart FARMACÊUTICOS, SOCIEDADE UNIPESSOAL, LDA 13D – 3º A Rua Castilho 1250-066 Lisboa Portugal 4) FERRING S.A.S. Represented by François Pochart 7 à 13, 7 Rue Jean-Baptiste Clément 94250 Gentilly France 5) FERRING PHARMACEUTICALS A/S Represented by François Pochart 405 Amager Strandvej 2770 Kastrup Denmark 2 Defendants 1) ACCORD HEALTHCARE B.V. Represented by Jules Fabre Winthontlaan 200 3526 KV Utrecht The Netherlands 2) ACCORD HEALTHCARE FRANCE S.A.S. Represented by Jules Fabre 635 Rue de la Chaude Rivière 59800 Lille France 3) ACCORD HEALTHCARE S.L.U. Represented by Jules Fabre WTC – Moll de Barcelona s/n, Edificio Este, 6ª planta 08039 Barcelona Spain 4) ACCORD HEALTHCARE POLSKA SP. Z O.O. Represented by Jules Fabre ul. Taśmowa 7 02-677 Warszawa Poland 5) LABORATORI FUNDACIÓ DAU Represented by Jules Fabre Carrer de la Lletra C, 12-14, Polígono Industrial Zona Franca 08040 Barcelona Spain 6) PHARMADOX HEALTHCARE LIMITED KW20A, Kordin Industrial Park PLA 3000 Paola Malta 7) ACCORD HEALTHCARE, UNIPESSOAL LDA Represented by Jules Fabre Lagoas Park, Edifício 5B, Piso 2 2740-245 Porto Salvo Portugal 3 PATENT AT ISSUE Patent no. Proprietor/s EP4512389 FERRING B.V. DECIDING JUDGE Judge-rapporteur Van Peursem LANGUAGE OF PROCEEDINGS: English POINTS AT ISSUE/GROUNDS 1. On 1 June 2026 defendants 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7 filed requests for correction of service dates and alignment of defendants’ deadlines pursuant to R.331.1 and R.334.a RoP – boiling down to i.a. a R.9 application to align the dates for the lodging of the Preliminary objection, if any, on 18 June 2026 and the Statement of Defence and any Counterclaim for revocation on 18 August 2026 for these defendants. 2. The Claimants agreed to this request on 5 June 2026, but also requested to set the same dates for defendant 6, notwithstanding that no representative for defendant 6 is yet known. 3. Although indeed no representative for defendant 6 is yet known, according to R.271.6.b RoP the effective service date for defendant 6 is 18 May 2026, since that is the tenth day following posting, which posting was subsequently delivered at defendant 6 on 11 May 2026, according to Proof of Service of defendant 6. However, this date is subject to the conditions set forth in R.271.6.b RoP (after “unless”). Since defendant 6 did not yet make an appearance in court in this case, it cannot have made any objections based on these conditions, so the judge-rapporteur will need to reserve the right to decide this as set out in the operational part of the order. 4. Therefore the requested alignment for all defendants, including defendant 6, can be the same as requested and agreed upon for defendants 1, 2, 3, 5 and 7, without prejudice to the deadlines that apply for defendant 6 as foreseen in the UPCA/RoP. 5. The judge-rapporteur confirms the new deadlines for all the defendants by order pursuant to R.9.3 RoP. It is not necessary to correct the service dates as requested by defendants 1, 2 and 7. ORDER 1. The deadline for lodging a Preliminary objection according to R.19.1 RoP is 18 June 2026 for all defendants, subject to application of any of the conditions as mentioned in R.271.6.b RoP (after “unless”) regarding defendant 6; 2. The deadline for lodging the Statement of Defence according to R.23 RoP and the 4 Counterclaim for revocation according to R.25.1 RoP is 18 August 2026 for all defendants, subject to application of any of the conditions as mentioned in R. 271.6.b RoP (after “unless”) regarding defendant 6. Robert van Peursem, Judge-rapporteurGerard Robert Bernard van Peursem Digitaal ondertekend door Gerard Robert Bernard van Peursem Datum: 2026.06.09 00:13:42 +02'00' 5

Key Holdings

  • Judicial Registrar has the power to align procedural deadlines for multiple defendants in an infringement action.
  • Alignment can proceed even if one defendant has not yet formally appeared, provided valid service is anticipated.
  • Synchronizing deadlines for multiple defendants is generally considered beneficial for case management.
  • Future rule-making for deadline alignment should prioritize efficiency and prevent delaying tactics.

Tags

  • Infringement
  • Procedure
  • Time Limits
  • Case Management
  • Multiple Defendants
  • Judicial Registrar

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