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New convention for European patents

Munich, 13 December 2007 -- After years of intensive negotiations and preparations, the revised European Patent Convention (EPC) enters into force today, providing Europe with a new legal framework for patent protection. The convention governs the granting of European patents by the European Patent Office (EPO) and applies throughout the 32 member states of the European Patent Organisation.

To quote EPO President Alison Brimelow: "The new convention is a further milestone in international patent law in Europe. It simplifies access to Europe-wide patent protection and makes procedures before the EPO easier for applicants and patent proprietors, while maintaining the Office's reliable structures and high quality standards".

The original agreement dates back to 1973. The revised version takes account of significant developments in international patent law and thus is an outstanding example of efficient harmonisation in international intellectual property protection. "The new EPC can also be adapted to new legal developments, and in particular to future Community law, more easily than the old convention," says President Brimelow. Many amendments can now be adopted by the Organisation's Administrative Council itself, without the need for the member states to hold a full diplomatic conference.

Applicants and proprietors now have the benefit of simpler procedures before the EPO, as the new treaty means less bureaucracy, lower overall costs and yet more legal certainty. The revised EPC strengthens applicants' rights: from now on, patent applications can be filed in any language, though subsequently of course, within a defined period, a translation will have to be submitted in English, French or German, the EPO's official languages. Simple and efficient means of redress are available in case time limits are missed during the examination procedure, and they do not cause any delays in proceedings. One major new feature is the limitation procedure, which lets proprietors restrict the scope of their patents of their own accord, in central proceedings before the EPO and with effect for all the contracting states. Previously there were comparable procedures in only six of the 32 contracting states, and each had legal effect only in the country concerned.

In 1998 the contracting states decided that the time had come for a fundamental overhaul of the convention, and they reached agreement on an extensive catalogue of legal and technical issues that needed to be reviewed. At a diplomatic conference in November 2000 they signed the EPC 2000 Final Act with the aim of modernising the European patent system. The conference resolved that the revised text should enter into force two years after the fifteenth contracting state had deposited its instrument of ratification or accession. Greece was the fifteenth state to do so, on 13 December 2005, and that meant the EPC 2000 would come into effect on 13 December 2007. All 32 current EPC contracting states have now acceded to the new convention, together with Norway and Croatia, which are due to join the European Patent Organisation on 1 January 2008.

For more information go to: http://www.european-patent-office.org/legal/epc/e/ma7.html
Contact:
Rainer Osterwalder
Media Relations Directorate
D-80298 Munich
Phone: +49 89/2399-1820
Fax: +49 89/2399-2850
Mobile: +49 163/8399-527
rosterwalder@epo.org