The changing European judiciary – the reform of the General Court of the EU and the advent of the Unified Patent Court

The presentation gives an overview of the powers and the structure of the existing EU Courts, highlighting the General Court’s ongoing extension and reform, and also provides insights into their working practices. Further, it outlines the economic and legal reasons that triggered the creation of the Unified Patent Court, the first truly federal court within the EU, and explains its main features and potential future significance.

 Viktor Łuszcz has worked for eleven years at the General Court of the EU as a law clerk (référendaire) and drafted more than sixty judgments in various fields related to the internal market, i.a. trade, customs, competition, and intellectual property. He is the editor and a co-author of European Court Procedure – A Practical Guide, scheduled for release in 2016, a thorough yet user-friendly book giving insights into judicial proceedings regarding the application of EU law. Viktor’s past working experience also includes the European Commission’s DG Competition and the Hungarian EU Council Presidency team where he was responsible for the elaboration of the Presidency’s strategy as to the creation of the Unified Patent Court and the unitary EU patent. A graduate of the College of Europe and the University of Rennes, Viktor is fluent in English, French, German, Hungarian and Polish and has a broad experience in training and lecturing, including courses organized by the École Nationale d’Administration, the University of Lund, and the OECD-GVH Regional Centre for Competition.