UPC: Mannheim Local Chamber on International and Local Jurisdiction for Non-EU Defendants

In this decision, the Mannheim Local Chamber examines the requirements for the international and local jurisdiction of the Unified Patent Court, particularly when defendants are domiciled outside the European Union. The defendants in this case were resident either in the Netherlands or outside the European Union. The Court affirmed both its international jurisdiction over a defendant domiciled outside the European Union pursuant to Article 31 of the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court (UPCA) in conjunction with Article 7(2) and Articles 71a and 71b of the Brussels I bis Regulation, as well as its competence under Article 32(1)(a) UPCA. The Court reasoned that the action sufficiently alleged acts of infringement against all defendants; their actual involvement remains to be clarified in detail during the main proceedings. For the internal allocation of jurisdiction under Article 33 UPCA, a coherent allegation that acts of infringement have occurred or are imminent in Germany is sufficient, for instance through online offers of the contested products that are accessible throughout Europe. Consequently, the Mannheim Local Chamber rejected a transfer of the case to the The Hague Local Chamber. (LC Mannheim 12.2.2026, CFI 575/2025).