POLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Krystyna Szczepanowska-Kozłowska, Marcin Ziarkowski, Krzysztof Popławski and Kacper Sobolewski, A&O Shearman
basis of the material collected both before the court of first instance and the court of second instance. The court of second instance may admit new evidence and facts invoked by the party if the possibility of invoking them arose only in the course of the appel ‑ late proceedings. The examination of the case takes place within the scope of the grounds specified in the appeal. However, if the proceedings in the court of first instance are invalid, the court will consider it ex offi ‑ cio. The court may examine the case at a non-public session if holding a hearing is unnecessary. However, a court hearing must take place if the party has filed a motion for it. Second-instance decisions can be appealed to the Supreme Court within two months of the delivery of a reasoned judgment. An appeal on a point of law to the Supreme Court can only be based on points of law or procedural violations that could have affected the outcome of the case. The Supreme Court accepts an appeal on the point of law for examination only in exceptional cases, such as if there is a significant legal issue or there is a need for interpretation of legal rules that raise serious doubts in the courts’ jurisprudence. The Supreme Court can uphold, quash, or amend the second-instance decisions or remand the case to the lower courts for reconsideration. PI Proceedings An appeal against a PI decision must be filed by a party to the court of second instance (the appellate court). In cases of patent infringement, the competent court will always be the Court of Appeal in Warsaw, 7th Commercial and Intellectual Property Division. The obliged party must file an appeal against the deci ‑ sion within seven days of receiving it, along with a justification (the only exception to this is when the court dispenses with the need for a justification of the decision). The appeal is not examined by the court that issued the challenged decision, but that court can review its own decision and amend it before sending the case files to the court of second instance. During the appeal proceedings, the obliged party has the right to present its arguments. The court of second instance examines the motion for PI by considering all the circumstances. The court of second instance
should examine the appeal against a PI decision with ‑ out delay but no later than one month from the date of its receipt. In practice, however, the courts often exceed the one-month deadline, and the appeal may take several months to be reviewed. In the event of a final dismissal of the motion for a PI, the injunction ceases to be effective. Patent Invalidation Proceedings A complaint against decisions on patent invalidity can be filed with the Voivodeship Administrative Court within 30 days from the date of delivery of the decision to the complainant, together with a written justifica ‑ tion. The complaint to the administrative court is filed through the PPO. The PPO may exercise self-control over the issued decision, ie, accept the complaint in full within 30 days from the date of its receipt and revoke the contested decision. In the proceedings, the administrative court does not establish the factual circumstances of the case, nor does it conduct evidentiary proceedings or assess the evidence collected to determine which facts can be considered proven. Instead, the court focuses on reviewing the actions of the administrative authorities to ensure they were performed correctly. It checks whether the authorities adhered to the relevant pro ‑ visions of administrative procedure and substantive law, including whether they thoroughly examined and assessed the evidence presented. The administrative court issuing a judgment is not bound by the scope of the complaint or the legal basis invoked by a party. A cassation appeal against the judgment of the Voivodeship Administrative Court may be filed with the Supreme Administrative Court within 30 days from the date of service of the judgment. A cassation appeal can be based on a violation of substantive law or a violation of the provisions of the proceedings if the infringement could significantly impact the out ‑ come of the case.
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