“On 15 May 2020 at its Annual Meeting, the European Patent Litigators Association (EPLIT) appointed Leythem Wall as its new President for the 2020-2022 term. EPLIT is an association for European patent attorneys, whose objectives are for promoting their participation in user friendly, fair, efficient and cost effective patent litigation in Europe.
Leythem previously served as a Board member of EPLIT. He has also played an active role in its education and training work group, including participation in events such as the EPLIT UPC mock trials in Munich and the London UPC Central Division. Leythem, a European patent attorney and UK Higher Courts patent litigator, becomes the second President of EPLIT. He follows Koen Bijvank, its first President and co-founder of EPLIT which began in 2013.
Also at the Annual Meeting, EPLIT elected new Board Members Daniel Alge, Bernard Ledeboer, Patrick Marollé, Henri Bourgeois, Kay Rupprecht and Lucy Samuels. Gratitude was expressed to departing Board members Rainer Beetz, Brigitte Böhm, Marek Łazewski, Ferenc Török and Patrice Vidon.
On his appointment, Leythem had this to say “EPLIT is a fantastic organisation for patent attorneys, with a truly European network. While there have been some setbacks for the Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court systems, EPLIT remains committed to the support of such projects. We shall wholeheartedly continue to promote our objectives with a view to European patent attorney representation and best practices, whether before the UPC, national courts, or EPO inter partes proceedings. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Koen and other departing Board members, whose contributions and service have been truly outstanding. With such a well-established base and the composition of another talented and strong Board, we can all look forward to this next chapter of EPLIT.“
Departing President Koen Bijvank stated “It has been very exciting and a great honour to serve as EPLIT’s first president. Although it is disappointing that the Unified Patent Court has not opened its doors during my tenure, I am confident that a way will be found in the future for a pan-European patent court. Whether that can be based on the current version of the Unified Patent Court Agreement or whether new negotiations between stakeholders are necessary remains to be seen. But, either way, I believe EPLIT is by now an established voice that is recognized as representing an important group of patent professionals and will have a significant role to play. The association is in excellent hands with Leythem at the helm.”
