f) Applicability of considerations set out in G 1/21 to first-instance proceedings

In T 1041/21 the opposition division had refused the two parties' request for postponement of the oral proceedings scheduled to take place by videoconference. The board found that G 1/21 date: 2021-07-16 had not been limited to boards for any particular reason, for instance because other or stricter criteria had to be applied to oral proceedings before opposition divisions; there had simply been no need for any specific clarification beyond that in the referred case. It therefore saw no reason not to apply the fundamental considerations of G 1/21 date: 2021-07-16 to the case before it too. Nor could it see any reasons to support the view that a videoconference was a less suitable format for holding oral proceedings in opposition than on appeal.