Accelerating and decelerating patent prosecution in Europe and the UK

The time it takes for a family of patent applications to progress through patent offices around the world is enormously variable. For many applicants in the life sciences field, delays in the patent application procedure are useful since they delay grant costs, and leave the scope of claims uncrystallised, creating uncertainty for third parties. However, where there is an identifiable product to be pushed to market, there may be a need to get enforceable protection quickly.