Specialized court divisions to take charge of IP disputes

The Italian Parliament has approved a new law, pursuant to which specialized court divisions will hear intellectual property (IP) disputes.

The law specifies that:

• specialized court divisions will be created in the 12 district courts and courts of appeal (ie, Bari, Bologna, Catania, Florence, Genoa, Milan, Naples, Palermo, Rome, Turin, Trieste and Venice);
  
  
• the presidents of the specialized divisions will be granted the same rights and powers as those presently held by the presidents of the district courts and courts of appeal; and
  
  
• by mid-2003, the government must implement supplementary legislation on the necessary legal procedures for the handling of IP disputes.

It is hoped that the creation of specialized court divisions will promote the accumulation of IP expertise by the small number of judges who will be appointed to preside over and work in the new divisions. It is also hoped that specialization will ensure more consistent case law.

Julia Holden, Trevisan & Cuonzo Avvocati, Milan