On October 1, 2015, the Preparatory Committee announced it would complete its mission in June 2016 and that the Community Court should be effective end of 2016 or early 2017. The rules of procedure (18th draft) were adopted on 19 October 2015. They are almost final.
The parties may be represented before the new court system either by lawyers authorized to practice before a court of a Member State (Art 48(1) of the UPC Agreement) or by European Patent Attorneys who have appropriate qualifications such as a European certificate in the field of litigation patents (EPLC - European Patent Litigation Certificate) (Art 48(2) of the UPC Agreement).
The two qualifications being complementary, a representation by both a lawyer and a Patents Attorney will be recommended.
The terms of this EPLC were decided on 3 September 2015.