Netgear Deutschland v Huawei (CFI, 18 January 2024)
| Date | 18 January 2024 |
|---|---|
| Court | CFI |
| Division | Munich (DE) Local Division |
| Type of action | Infringement Action |
| Case number(s) | UPC_CFI_9/2023 |
| Registry reference | App_595631/2023 · UPC_CFI_9/2023 |
| Parties | Netgear Deutschland GmbH, Netgear Inc., Netgear International Limited v. Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. |
Official decision (PDF) · UPC registry entry
Case timeline
- 3 October 2023 : Huawei Technologies v Netgear (CFI, 3 October 2023) ORD575878/2023 · UPC_CFI_9/2023
- 11 December 2023 : Netgear Deutschland v Huawei (CFI, 11 December 2023) ORD_586381/2023 · UPC_CFI_9/2023
- 11 December 2023 : Huawei v Netgear (CFI, ORD_593105/2023, 11 December 2023) ORD_593105/2023 · UPC_CFI_9/2023
- 11 December 2023 : Huawei v Netgear (CFI, ORD_587438/2023, 11 December 2023) ORD_587438/2023 · UPC_CFI_9/2023
- 9 February 2024 : Huawei v Netgear (CFI, 9 February 2024) ACT_459771/2023 · ORD_2866/2024 · UPC_CFI_9/2023
- 19 February 2024 : Huawei v Netgear Deutschland (CFI, 19 February 2024) App_6074/2024 · ORD_6286/2024 · UPC_CFI_9/2023
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
By order of 18 January 2024 (UPC_CFI_9/2023, App_595631/2023), the Munich Local Division, on Netgear’s application for review, confirmed the judge-rapporteur’s order of 11 December 2023 allowing Huawei to extend its infringement action, based on EP 3 611 989, to a second patent, EP 3 678 321. It specified the time limit for the defence to the extension and granted leave to appeal, since the question goes beyond the case at hand.
Question
Huawei had brought its action on 1 June 2023 and applied on 23 November 2023 to extend it to the second patent, relying on the limitation proceedings conducted before the EPO on the first patent until 20 October 2023 and on the fact that the same WiFi6 functionality was at issue. The judge-rapporteur had admitted the extension under Rule 263 RoP and set the value of the dispute at EUR 2 million, of which EUR 1 million for the extension. Netgear challenged that decision.
Decision
The application for review is admissible, since admitting an extension shapes the proceedings. On the merits, the panel adopted the judge-rapporteur’s reasoning: admissibility of the extension is governed by Rule 263 alone, not national law, and Huawei could not reasonably have been expected to rely on the second patent before the limitation proceedings ended. For the extension, the defendants receive the same time limits as for a separate action, but no more: the period for the defence ran from 11 December 2023 and expires, without extension, on 11 March 2024. Leave to appeal was granted.
Key points for practice
- Extending an infringement action to a further patent is assessed under Rule 263 RoP, taking account in particular of pending limitation proceedings before the EPO.
- The time limit for the defence to the extension runs from its admission and is no longer than for a separate action.
Provisions applied
- Agreement on a Unified Patent Court
- Art. 73(2)(b)
- Rules of Procedure
- Rules 220.2, 220.3, 224.1(b), 263.1, 263.3 and 333
- Case law cited
- None.
Related decisions
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.
Decisions in the same proceedings
Going further
Lexicon: Patent infringement action.
Publications by Matthieu Dhenne: Pleading the Long Arm: What a UPC Statement of Claim Must Carry Beyond Jurisdiction (Kluwer Patent Blog).
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
- defendantHuawei Technologies Co. Ltd.42 decisions in the corpusFollow this party
- claimantNetgear Inc.22 decisions in the corpusFollow this party
- claimantNetgear Deutschland GmbH20 decisions in the corpusFollow this party
- claimantNetgear International Limited19 decisions in the corpusFollow this party
Decisions in the same proceedings and documented appeals
- 3 October 2023 Huawei Technologies v Netgear (CFI, 3 October 2023) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_9/2023
Le juge rapporteur accordera la protection de la règle 262A dès son dépôt dans le circuit approprié, renvoie le huis clos à la formation d'audience, diffère la confidentialité du jugement et rejette l'extension des obligations à des tiers.
- 11 December 2023 Netgear Deutschland v Huawei (CFI, 11 December 2023) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_9/2023
L'avis du juge rapporteur renvoyant l'exception préliminaire au fond n'est ni une décision ni une ordonnance au sens de la règle 333.1, la demande de réexamen par la formation est irrecevable et c'est le juge rapporteur qui la rejette.
- 11 December 2023 Huawei v Netgear (CFI, ORD_593105/2023, 11 December 2023) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_9/2023
La division locale de Munich invite les défenderesses à se prononcer sous quatorze jours sur la disjonction de l'extension de l'action au brevet EP 3 678 321, la demanderesse pouvant répondre sous sept jours.
- 11 December 2023 Huawei v Netgear (CFI, ORD_587438/2023, 11 December 2023) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_9/2023
L'extension de l'action en contrefaçon à EP 3 678 321 est autorisée, la valeur du litige est portée à 2 millions d'euros et les parties sont invitées à s'exprimer sur une disjonction.
- 18 January 2024 Netgear Deutschland v Huawei (CFI, 18 January 2024) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_9/2023
- 9 February 2024 Huawei v Netgear (CFI, 9 February 2024) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_9/2023
Faute d'accord de la demanderesse, la langue de la procédure reste l'allemand. Les audiences se tiendront toutefois en anglais, les représentants y ayant consenti, et des traductions de travail anglaises des écritures sont demandées.
- 19 February 2024 Huawei v Netgear Deutschland (CFI, 19 February 2024) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_9/2023
La division locale de Munich juge efficace le dépôt combiné de Huawei du 29 janvier 2024, fixe le calendrier et l'audience de juin 2024 et fixe la valeur de la procédure à 2 millions d'euros.
- 22 February 2024 Netgear v Huawei Technologies (CoA, ORD_9613/2024, 22 February 2024) Application for an Order for expedition of an appeal (RoP225(e)) · appeal, first-instance number cited in the decision
La cour d'appel rejette la demande de Netgear d'abréger le délai de réponse de Huawei, déposée le dernier jour de son propre délai, les intérêts de l'intimé et les principes d'une procédure régulière l'emportant.
- 22 February 2024 Netgear v Huawei Technologies (CoA, ORD_9612/2024, 22 February 2024) Application for an Order for expedition of an appeal (RoP225(e)) · appeal, first-instance number cited in the decision
La cour d'appel rejette la demande de Netgear d'abréger le délai de réponse de Huawei, déposée le dernier jour de son propre délai, les intérêts de l'intimé et les principes d'une procédure régulière l'emportant.
- 11 March 2024 Netgear International v Huawei (CoA, 11 March 2024) Appeal RoP220.2 · appeal, first-instance number cited in the decision
La cour d'appel annule partiellement l'ordonnance de la division locale de Munich du 18 janvier 2024 et fixe au 18 avril 2024 le délai de défense, et de demande reconventionnelle en nullité, sur le brevet ajouté par Huawei.
- 11 March 2024 NETGEAR Deutschland v Huawei (CoA, 11 March 2024) Appeal RoP220.2 · appeal, first-instance number cited in the decision
La cour d'appel annule partiellement l'ordonnance de la division locale de Munich du 18 janvier 2024 et fixe au 18 avril 2024 le délai de défense, et de demande reconventionnelle en nullité, sur le brevet ajouté par Huawei.
- 21 March 2024 Netgear v Huawei (CoA, 21 March 2024) Request for a discretionary review (RoP 220.3) · appeal, first-instance number cited in the decision
Seule la formation statue sur la recevabilité d'une demande de réexamen de la règle 333, la décision du juge-rapporteur de joindre l'exception préliminaire au fond peut faire l'objet d'un tel réexamen, et l'affaire est renvoyée à la division locale de Munich.
What the record states
- Nature of the act
- Infringement Action
- Outcome (Dhenne Avocats summary)
- La formation confirme l'admission de l'extension de l'action de Huawei au brevet EP 3 678 321, fixe le terme du délai de défense sur l'extension au 11 mars 2024 et autorise l'appel.
- Appeal
- An appeal is documented in the corpus (see above).
- Instance
- First-instance decision, whether it has become final is not recorded.
Patents mentioned
EP 3 678 321mentioned in: summary of the decision, Dhenne Avocats analysis Follow this patentEP 3 611 989mentioned in: Dhenne Avocats analysis Follow this patent
Related decisions cited in the analyses
- Huawei v Netgear Deutschland (CFI, 19 February 2024) cited in this record
- Huawei v Netgear (CFI, 9 February 2024) cited in this record
- Netgear Deutschland v Huawei (CFI, 11 December 2023) cited in this record
- Huawei v Netgear (CFI, ORD_593105/2023, 11 December 2023) cited in this record
- Huawei v Netgear (CFI, ORD_587438/2023, 11 December 2023) cited in this record
- Huawei Technologies v Netgear (CFI, 3 October 2023) cited in this record
Patents and standards
| Publication | Role in the dispute | Family | Standard and declaration | Pool | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EP 3 678 321Resource scheduling method, apparatus, and device recorded proprietor: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd | Patent at issue according to the summary or official headnote Also mentioned in 16 other decision(s): Huawei Technologies v NETGEAR Deutschland (CFI, 8 May 2024) · Huawei v Netgear (CFI, ORD_593105/2023, 11 December 2023) · Huawei v Netgear (CFI, ORD_587438/2023, 11 December 2023) · Huawei Technologies v TP-Link Systems (CFI, 18 November 2025) · Huawei Technologies v Netgear (CFI, 13 January 2025) · Netgear Deutschland v Huawei Technologies (CFI, 10 January 2025) · Huawei Technologies v Netgear Deutschland (CFI, ORD_1780/2025, 10 Janu · Huawei v Netgear International (CFI, 2 January 2025) | not recorded | not recorded | not recorded | Espacenet · European Patent Register existence and title of the publication checked on 30 October 2026 (Google Patents, Espacenet and Register links are not checked automatically) mentioned in: summary of the decision, Dhenne Avocats analysis |
EP 3 611 989Method and apparatus for transmitting wireless local area network information recorded proprietor: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd | Mentioned in the analysis (role not qualified) Also mentioned in 19 other decision(s): Huawei v Netgear (CFI, ORD_598540/2023, 18 December 2024) · Huawei Technologies v Sercomm (CFI, 8 July 2026) · Huawei Technologies v Netgear (CFI, 13 January 2025) · Huawei Technologies v Netgear Deutschland (CFI, ORD_1830/2025, 10 Janu · Netgear Deutschland v Huawei Technologies (CFI, 10 January 2025) · Netgear v Huawei Technologies (CFI, 27 December 2024) · Huawei v Netgear (CFI, 11 December 2024) · Huawei v Netgear International (CFI, 9 September 2024) | not recorded | not recorded | not recorded | Espacenet · European Patent Register existence and title of the publication checked on 30 October 2026 (Google Patents, Espacenet and Register links are not checked automatically) mentioned in: Dhenne Avocats analysis |
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