The Düsseldorf Local Division held that handing a statement of claim to staff at an exhibitor’s trade-fair stand is valid service under Rule 271.5(a) RoP. Because the Chinese defendant filed no defence within three months, the Court entered a default judgment and awarded the patentee full pan-UPC relief.
igus sued Whale Technology (Shanghai) over EP 3 912 243 B1 (unitary effect) for a clean-room cable guide. On 3 April 2025, a bailiff personally served the statement of claim at the defendant’s stand at the Hannover trade fair. The defendant then stayed silent. On 5 August 2025, the Court issued a decision by default (UPC_CFI_318/2025), finding direct infringement by offering both at the stand and through follow-up catalogues emailed to visitors. Value in dispute: €500,000. Language of proceedings: German.
Rule 271.5(a) allows service “at any place within the Contracting Member States where the company… has a permanent or temporary place of business.” The Court said a trade-fair stand qualifies as a temporary place of business, particularly where deliveries are promoted or solicited. It presumes that exhibitors promote deliveries at a fair unless there are indications to the contrary. Here, none existed. To the contrary, the catalogue sent to stand visitors referenced an affiliated company but used the same headquarters address and the defendant’s website, tying the marketing back to the defendant. Service at the stand was therefore good, and the three-month deadline to respond started that day.
Under Rule 355 RoP, a default judgment may be given where the defendant fails to submit a written defence after valid service and sufficient time to respond. Those conditions were met. The Court then assessed whether the pleaded facts substantiated the claims; they did. Result: default judgment for the claimant.
If your target exhibits in UPC territory, serve at the stand. Bring a bailiff, record signage, badges, product displays, QR codes, and any post-fair marketing to visitors – these links helped the Court treat the stand as a temporary place of business and the conduct as an “offering” in the UPCA area. Do not assume that putting an affiliate’s name on a brochure insulates the true actor; matching addresses and domains will bridge that gap. Finally, once served, the three-month clock runs – missing it can hand the patentee the full package on default.
