Intellectual Property Bill [HL]
Debate between Viscount Younger of Leckie and Lord Walker of Gestingthorpe
Lord Walker of Gestingthorpe
I, too, support this amendment. Without condescending to personalities, the prestige of the patents county court is now a good deal higher than it was at an earlier stage. It certainly undertakes work just as demanding as the Patents Court in the High Court.
Viscount Younger of Leckie
My Lords, we understand that this is a probing amendment. It would introduce the patents county court as an alternative appeals body to the High Court and the appointed person. Clause 10 reproduces the appeal routes for the IPO’s decisions in relation to trade marks, which have proved to be very effective and popular. This system provides two routes of appeal, one low cost and one high cost, for those who wish to appeal a decision of the registrar.
On the face of it, the patents county court would introduce another relatively low-cost appeal route. However, although fees are about £135, use of the PCC may involve legal representation, so it is not always the case that this would be a low-cost route of appeal compared with the High Court. In contrast, the cost to business of using the appointed person is currently zero. In addition, because the appointed person is a relatively informal route, businesses have traditionally, in the trade mark field, represented themselves. This means they also avoid the additional legal costs that might be incurred if they went through the PCC or the High Court. In cases sufficiently important to warrant appeal to a court, the Government believe that the PCC offers less flexibility to businesses than the High Court because it places limits on costs that may be recovered and limits hearings to two days. It is likely that this would be too restrictive in complex cases or cases requiring cross-examination. Introducing the PCC as a third route of appeal does not appear to add significant benefits; rather, it simply appears to add another layer of complexity in the decision-making process for business. Therefore, the Government are not convinced that adding this other route of appeal would serve a useful purpose. I ask the noble Lord to withdraw his amendment.