Rule 33 – Application by a party for allocating a technically qualified judge

1. Any party to the proceedings may lodge an Application for allocating a technically qualified judge to the panel which shall contain an indication of the relevant field of technology.

2. The Application shall be lodged as early as possible in the written procedure. An Application lodged after the closure of the written procedure [Rule 35] shall only be granted if justified in view of changed circumstances, such as new submissions presented by the other party, and allowed by the Court.

3. If the requirements of paragraphs 1 and 2 have been complied with, the President of the Court of First Instance shall allocate a technically qualified judge to the panel, after consulting the judge-rapporteur.

See also: article 8 UPCA

Case Law

IPPT20240902, UPC CFI, President, Valeo Electrification v Magna
Application for review of the allocation of technically qualified judge dismissed (Rule 9.1 RoP, Rules 33-34 RoP). The technically qualified judge is one of the judges of the panel as defined in Articles 19 and 20 UPCA (concerning the Court of First Instance) and the legal texts governing the UPC do not provide the opportunity for the parties to “make suggestion regarding (…) the technical or other relevant background” of one of the judges allocated to the panel, unlike in the case of the appointment of a court expert (R 185.2 RoP). 

IPPT20230922, UPC CFI, LD Düsseldorf, Nutricia v Nestlé

Request for the allocation of a technically qualified judge postponed until the statement of defence has been lodged (article 8 UPCA, Rule 33 RoP). The submission should take place at a stage in the written procedure where the judge-rapporteur could possibly have a first rough assessment of whether an additional technically qualified judge is needed or not. […]. By its very nature, the earliest point at which such an assessment could be made is after the filing of the statement of defence.