Icescape Ltd v Ice-World International BV & Ors, Ch Div (John Baldwin QC), 23/1/17

The claimants obtained damages for groundless threats of infringement proceedings, a declaration of non-infringement, and an order that a European patent concerning a cooling system for a mobile ice rink be revoked. Claim 1 of the patent was not supported by matter disclosed in the priority document, and if the patent could not maintain its earliest priority date it was invalid because of prior disclosure. The defendants failed to lead evidence that they had not known or had no reason to suspect the patent was invalid, and in the circumstances they could not maintain a defence to the threats claim.