Recently published decisions 2022
All board of appeal decisions released for publication in the last three months are shown in the list below (newest first). The website checks for new decisions daily and updates the list accordingly. For full lists per year, please access the subpages.
December 2022
Berichtigung der Bezeichnung einer Einsprechenden (ja)
Hilfsantrag 5 - zugelassen - hätte bereits im erstinstanzlichen Verfahren vorgebracht werden können (nein)
Einwand mangelnder erfinderischer Tätigkeit - zugelassen (ja)
Hilfsantrag 5 - Erfinderische Tätigkeit (nein) naheliegende Alternative
Hilfsantrag 8 - nicht zugelassen - rechtfertigende Gründe für die Änderungen (nein)
Inventive step - main request and first auxiliary request (no), second auxiliary request (yes)
Sufficient disclosure - second auxiliary request (yes)
Amendment after summons - exceptional circumstances (yes)
Inventive step - (yes)
Sufficiency of disclosure - (yes)
Added subject-matter - (no)
Inventive step - (yes)
Main request and auxiliary requests 1-5 - Sufficiency of disclosure (No)
Auxiliary request 6 - Sufficiency of disclosure (Yes)
Auxiliary request 6 - Inventive step (Yes)
1.) Article 69 EPC in conjunction with Article 1 of the Protocol thereto can and should be relied on when interpreting claims and determining the claimed subject-matter in proceedings before the EPO, including for the purpose of assessing compliance with Article 123(2) EPC (Reasons 3.1-3.15).
2.) Although Article 69(1), second sentence, EPC requires that generally account be taken of the description and the drawings when interpreting a claim, the primacy of the claims according to Article 69(1), first sentence, EPC limits the extent to which the meaning of a certain claim feature may be affected by the description and the drawings (Reasons 3.16-3.16.2).
3.) Claim interpretation is overall a question of law which must as such ultimately be answered by the deciding body, and not by linguistic or technical experts. It does, however, involve the appraisal of linguistic and technical facts which may be supported by evidence submitted by the parties (Reasons 3.17).
New evidence filed on appeal - admitted (yes)
Amendments - added subject-matter (yes)
Amendments - inescapable trap (yes)
Correction of error - (no)
Erfinderische Tätigkeit - Hauptantrag (nein)
Erfinderische Tätigkeit - Hilfsantrag (ja)
Änderung des Beschwerdevorbringens - rechtfertigende Gründe des Beteiligten (ja)