19 May 2026: Väisänen IP Oy: Proposed reform of the Finnish Utility Model Act would weaken legal protection – we propose a more workable solution

Väisänen IP Oy has submitted a statement on the draft Government Proposal to amend the Finnish Utility Model Act.

The Finnish Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment is preparing amendments to the Utility Model Act partly because generative AI may lower the cost of preparing applications and increase the risk of mass filings and strategic misuse of unexamined utility model rights.

Väisänen IP Oy combines practical experience in patent and utility model filings with hands-on experience in IP litigation and enforcement in Finland, Germany and before the Unified Patent Court, while being at the forefront of using AI in the preparation and analysis of IP applications. This gives us a particularly practical perspective on how proposed legislative changes would affect right holders, alleged infringers and court proceedings.

Criticism: the proposed export manufacturing exception is problematic

In our statement, we support the clarification of the inventive step requirement for utility models and its alignment with patent-law assessment.

However, we oppose the proposed export manufacturing exception. Under the proposal, the exclusive right conferred by a Finnish utility model would no longer cover professional manufacturing in Finland if the product is placed on the market only outside Finland.

The problem is practical and procedural. The proposed exception would shift the infringement analysis from a technical comparison of the protected subject-matter and the allegedly infringing product to an assessment of commercial supply chains and market destination.

Manufacturing is a physical act. Under the proposed model, however, its lawfulness would depend on subsequent market destination. This would create difficult practical questions:

  • How should an injunction be formulated?
  • How could such an injunction be enforced?
  • How should export intent be proven?
  • Who bears the burden of proof?
  • Would effective preliminary injunctions still be available if the defendant invokes an export destination?

In our statement, we pay particular attention to the risk that the proposed exception would weaken preliminary legal protection and create uncertainty in enforcement. An enforcement authority cannot determine from the external characteristics of a product or manufacturing process whether a production batch is intended for the Finnish market or for export.

Alternative: cost pressure, fee structure and accelerated invalidation

We did not limit ourselves to criticism. We proposed a concrete alternative regulatory model in which the risk of misuse of the utility model system is addressed through procedural mechanisms rather than by narrowing the substantive scope of all utility model rights.

Our proposed measures include:

  • increased or progressive official fees,
  • limited loser-pays cost liability,
  • extended cost liability in clearly unfounded or abusive cases,
  • accelerated invalidation proceedings with a target timeframe of 6–12 months,
  • better procedural coordination between infringement proceedings and invalidity issues.

We also proposed concrete draft provisions for new sections 18 a–d of the Utility Model Act. Our aim is to preserve the substantive protection conferred by utility models as predictable and enforceable, while making strategic misuse of unexamined rights economically less attractive.

Practical concerns were also identified during the consultation round – Väisänen IP Oy proposed a detailed alternative model

Other stakeholders in the consultation round also identified practical issues relating to the proposed export manufacturing exception. For example, the Finnish Patent and Registration Office (PRH) noted that the proposal leaves several interpretative questions open in potential infringement situations. The Finnish Bar Association (Suomen Asianajajat) also pointed to evidentiary issues concerning when a product can be considered to be intended exclusively for markets outside Finland.

Väisänen IP Oy’s statement went further by presenting a detailed alternative regulatory model and concrete draft statutory provisions. Our proposal aims to address the risk of misuse of the utility model system more precisely: by accelerating invalidation proceedings, introducing cost consequences for abusive conduct and preserving the substantive protection of utility models as predictable and enforceable.

Read the full statement here:
https://www.lausuntopalvelu.fi/FI/Proposal/Participation?proposalId=585c64d6-eb35-48ef-877a-c812ccbab80b