GUALA PACK v LD Packaging (Foshan) (CFI, 30 April 2026)
| Date | 30 April 2026 |
|---|---|
| Court | CFI |
| Division | Milan (IT) Local Division |
| Type of action | Generic Order |
| Case number(s) | UPC_CFI_840/2026 |
| Registry reference | UPC-CFI-840/2026 |
| Parties | GUALA PACK S.p.A. v. LD Packaging (Foshan) Co. LTD |
Official decision (PDF) · UPC registry entry
Dhenne Avocats represents claimants and defendants in European patent disputes before the Unified Patent Court, including the Paris divisions.
Dhenne Avocats · 10 October 2026
Our analysis
Summary
In an order of 30 April 2026 (UPC_CFI_840/2026), the Milan Local Division allows Guala Pack to have its statement of claim served on LD Packaging (Foshan), a Chinese company, at its stand at the Interpack trade fair in Düsseldorf from 7 to 13 May 2026, by a German bailiff. The order shows how Rule 271.4(b) RoP can be used to reach a defendant based outside the Union quickly while service under the Hague Convention is still pending.
Question
Can the statement of claim be served on a Chinese defendant at its stand at a trade fair in Germany, under German law, while service under the 1965 Hague Convention is pending?
Decision
The judge-rapporteur finds that the defendant will have a temporary place of business at the fair, since it exhibits there and its European sales manager carries on commercial activity there. Electronic service does not meet the conditions of Rule 271.1 RoP, and the channels under Regulation (EU) 2020/1784 cannot be used before the fair ends. Under Rule 271.4(b), German law applies, and sections 168 and 176 of the ZPO allow service by a bailiff at the Court’s request. Service may be made on the sales manager or, failing that, on the most senior staff member present at the stand, with a Chinese translation, the claimant advancing the costs. The parallel Hague procedure causes the defendant no prejudice.
Key points for practice
- Practical point: a non-European defendant’s presence at a trade fair in a Member State may open a window for swift service, provided the Court is approached early enough and translations are ready.
Provisions applied
- Rules of Procedure
- Rules 270, 271 and 273
- Other provisions
- Regulation (EU) 2020/1784, Arts 3, 4, 16, 18, 19 and 20, German ZPO, sections 168 and 176, Hague Convention of 15 November 1965
Prepared by Dhenne Avocats from the official decision, consulted on 10 October 2026. The database is updated every week, on Friday. Only the official text is authoritative.
Going further
Lexicon: Written procedure (UPC), Court fees and costs (UPC).
Source and translations
- Official source
- Unified Patent Court registry link recorded in the record
- Original language
- not recorded
- Translation available
- no translation recorded the firm’s French record is a summary, not a translation
- Date checked
- not recorded
Follow this case
Proceedings, related decisions, appeals, parties and patents as recorded in the registry and in the Dhenne Avocats corpus. Each link states its source.
Parties
- claimantGUALA PACK S.p.A.Follow this party
- defendantLD Packaging (Foshan) Co. LTDFollow this party
Decisions in the same proceedings and documented appeals
What the record states
- Nature of the act
- Generic Order
- Outcome (Dhenne Avocats summary)
- La signification du mémoire en demande à la défenderesse chinoise est autorisée sur son stand du salon Interpack à Düsseldorf, par huissier allemand selon le droit allemand.
- Appeal
- No appeal documented in the corpus, this does not mean that no appeal was lodged.
- Instance
- First-instance decision, whether it has become final is not recorded.
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