Article 30

ADMINISTRATIVE COUNCIL

Report on the 182nd meeting of the Administrative Council of the European Patent Organisation (Munich, 19 and 20 March 2025)

The Administrative Council of the European Patent Organisation held its 182nd meeting in Munich in a hybrid format on 19 and 20 March 2025 under its Chairperson Josef KRATOCHVÍL (CZ).

After the Chairperson's activities report, the Council noted the Office's comprehensive quarterly activities report, which highlighted the developments of the five drivers under the SP2028 and the progress made with the KPIs. The Council congratulated the President, management and staff on the excellent results achieved. Delegations and observers expressed their appreciation for the Office's recruitment policy, its continuous commitment to quality, the developments in international and IT co-operation, and how the Office is leveraging the latest technological and artificial intelligence (AI) advancements while maintaining a human-centric approach.

Further, the Council noted the management report of the President of the Boards of Appeal (PBoA) for 2024. The Council warmly thanked the Boards of Appeal staff for their excellent results, the transparent, systematic and thorough reporting, and welcomed the additional information provided on aspects of the BoA's productivity.

The Council re-elected Mr Johannes Christian WICHARD (DE) as Chairperson of the Technical and Operational Support Committee (TOSC) and Mr Peter SLATER (UK) as Deputy Chairperson of the TOSC for a further term of office of three years, with effect from 30 June 2025 and 29 June 2025 respectively. Furthermore, the Council decided on the reappointment of members of the Boards of Appeal, based on proposals by the President of the Boards of Appeal.

In closed session, the Council noted the update provided by the Chairperson regarding the composition of the Board of Auditors and additional information relating to the Haar building.

Then, the Council unanimously approved the recommended common practice as regards observations by third parties and the recommended common practice as regards assignments.

The Council acknowledged the reports from the chairpersons of the Boards of Appeal Committee and of the Committee on Patent Law (CPL) on their recent meetings. Additionally, delegations had a further exchange on the processing of divisional applications.

Finally, the Council welcomed the Office's report on the latest Unitary Patent developments, which highlighted the milestone of having received more than 50 000 requests for unitary effect by March 2025, and noted the activities report from the delegation of Poland, the country holding the Presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2025. A brief report by the Chairperson of the Select Committee on its 33rd meeting was also noted.