​​EPO and FICPI emphasise importance of co-operation and user dialogue​

On 17 October 2024, the European Patent Office (EPO) and the International Federation of Intellectual Property Attorneys (FICPI) held their annual bilateral meeting in Munich. The hybrid meeting provided a platform for the EPO to share recent developments and for FICPI to present their 2024 initiatives. 

EPO Vice-President of the Patent Granting Process Steve Rowan welcomed FICPI President Roberto Pistolesi and his colleagues. Having emphasised the importance of user dialogue and co-operation for a resilient European patent system, Steve Rowan updated FICPI on major highlights, including the increase in European patent applications in 2023 of 2.9% on the previous year. Elaborating upon a series of recent quality initiatives, he also underscored the Office’s commitment to excellence, rooted in its highly specialised staff and strong legal framework.  

Updates were provided on the evolution of the Stakeholder Quality Assurance Panels (SQAPs) and on progress made with the Quality Action Plan 2024. There were also exchanges on how the EPO is leveraging AI for improved quality in classification, file allocation and search. 

An accessible and sustainable European patent system for the digital era 

Digital transformation was also a key focus of discussions. The EPO detailed its ongoing modernisation of the patent granting process and series of recent enhancements to MyEPO services, the suite of online user services that includes MyEPO Portfolio. By January 2025, the transition to accessing MyEPO services solely via two-factor authentication (2FA) will be complete.  

Updates were provided on further streamlining initiatives and legal changes to increase the scope of digital opportunities and achieve greater sustainability, including the abolition of acknowledgements of receipt and the introduction of new digital filing formats. With the successful move to modern platforms and cloud-based solutions at the EPO, the majority of the Office’s corporate services have been digitalised too, deepening collaboration and significantly improving both consistency and efficiency.  

Further in-depth updates on the Unitary Patent and the Unified Patent Court (UPC) were noted, including on the EPO's successful co-operation with the UPC. The FICPI delegation was impressed at how the uptake of the Unitary Patent has surpassed expectations and commended the Unitary Patent dashboard in the EPO’s Statistics & Trends Centre for contributing to transparency on this front. 

The meeting concluded with FICPI presenting their initiatives for 2024 and expressing gratitude for the EPO's collaboration, particularly on substantive patent law harmonisation. Both organisations reaffirmed their dedication to continuous dialogue and co-operation with a view to creating an inclusive and sustainable global IP ecosystem. 

Furthering interaction between patent attorneys and examiners 

On the occasion of the meeting, the EPO took the opportunity to interview FICPI President Roberto Pistolesi, who expressed his appreciation of many of the EPO’s products and services, including MyEPO Portfolio. This has been particularly well received, he said, for allowing “direct interaction between the patent attorney and the examiner, and has revealed to be very productive during the examination.” Watch the complete interview to hear his thoughts on the launch of the Unitary Patent and more about the EPO’s products and services.