The closing date for submission of applications for the positions of legally qualified judges and technically qualified judges of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) was last Monday, 4 July 2016. The UPC Preparatory Committee’s HR coordinator, György Kozma, has today revealed that there were 840 applicants in total, 33% of these being for a legal judge, 62% for a technical judge and the others for either position. It is intended to select for interview 280 applicants, and from these to appoint 45 legal and 50 technical judges in permanent positions, with another 45 legal and 50 technical ‘reserve’ judges. The aim is to ensure not only the best technical and legal expertise in the UPC but also a balanced composition on a broad geographical basis, including meeting the requirement for local nationality judges in the local divisions. For more information on the selection process, see here. Regarding nationality of the applicants, 40% are from Germany, 16% France, 13% Italy, 7% UK, and 3% from each of Austria, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden. Regarding age, 42% of the applicants are 25-45 years old, 52% are 46-60, and 6% are 61 or more. The gender split is 83% male, 17% female.