LAMA FRANCE v HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY (CFI, 19 December 2024)

Dhenne Avocats · 10 October 2026

Our analysis

Summary

By an order of 19 December 2024 (UPC_CFI_358/2023, ORD_66525/2024), the Paris Local Division, seized by LAMA FRANCE after its decision on the merits of 13 November 2024 in favour of HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY (HPDC), held that it had no power to stay enforcement of its own decision during the time limit for appeal. It restricted access to LAMA FRANCE’s invoices and accounts to the confidentiality club already in place and refused security. The order confirms that a stay is for the Court of Appeal alone.

Question

Can the Court of First Instance stay enforcement of its decision on the merits pending the time limit for appeal, and how are accounting data to be disclosed protected?

Decision

Only the Court of Appeal may suspend enforcement of a decision (Art. 74 UPCA and Rule 223), no appeal had been lodged, and neither Rule 118.8 nor Rule 345.5, which allows an immediate ruling in cases of extreme urgency but only within the powers of the first instance, supports a stay. Since restricting the club to the parties’ representatives is accepted only where the parties agree, the composition set by the order of 2 August 2024 was maintained under Rule 262A.6, for invoices and accounting data only. LAMA FRANCE had not justified confidentiality of its manufacturer and supplier networks. Security (Rules 118.8 and 352) was refused, the confidentiality club being sufficient.

Key points for practice

• A losing party wishing to avoid enforcement during the appeal period must lodge an appeal and apply to the Court of Appeal for suspensive effect.
• Practical point: without the opponent’s agreement, a lawyers-only club is hard to obtain, and confidentiality must be justified for each category of information.

Provisions applied

Agreement on a Unified Patent Court

Art. 74

Rules of Procedure

Rules 118.8, 220.2, 223, 262A.6, 345.5 and 352

Case law cited

NOVAWELL v C-KORE SYSTEMS, Paris Local Division, 26 March 2024 (UPC_CFI_397/2023), Plant-e v Arkyne, The Hague Local Division, 4 March 2024 (UPC_CFI_239/2023)

Related decisions

• HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT v LAMA FRANCE, 13 November 2024, decision on the merits whose enforcement is sought.
• HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT v LAMA FRANCE, 2 August 2024, order setting up the confidentiality club.

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.