Travaux Préparatoires EPC 1973

The Travaux Préparatoires EPC 1973 are an historical documentation of how each article/rule relating to the EPC 1973 came into being.

Convention

Article 1European law for the grant of patents
Article 2European patent
Article 3Territorial effect
Article 4European Patent Organisation
Article 5Legal status
Article 6Seat
Article 7Sub-offices of the European Patent Office
Article 8Privileges and immunities
Article 9Liability
Article 10Direction
Article 11Appointment of senior employees
Article 12Duties of office
Article 13Disputes between the Organisation and the employees of the European Patent Office
Article 14Languages of the European Patent Office
Article 15The departments charged with the procedure
Article 16Receiving Section
Article 17Search Divisions
Article 18Examining Divisions
Article 19Opposition Divisions
Article 20Legal Division
Article 21Boards of Appeal
Article 22Enlarged Board of Appeal
Article 23Independence of the members of the Boards
Article 24Exclusion and objection
Article 25Technical opinion
Article 26Membership
Article 27Chairmanship
Article 28Board
Article 29Meetings
Article 30Attendance of observers
Article 31Languages of the Administrative Council
Article 32Staff, premises and equipment
Article 33Competence of the Administrative Council in certain cases
Article 34Voting rights
Article 35Voting rules
Article 36Weighting of votes
Article 37Budgetary funding
Article 38The Organisation's own resources
Article 39Payments by the Contracting States in respect of renewal fees for European patents
Article 40Level of fees and payments - Special financial contributions
Article 41Advances
Article 42Budgetary funding
Article 43Authorisation for expenditure
Article 44Appropriations for unforeseeable expenditure
Article 45Accounting period
Article 46Preparation and adoption of the budget
Article 47Provisional budget
Article 48Budget implementation
Article 49Auditing of accounts
Article 50Financial Regulations
Article 51Rules relating to Fees
Article 52Patentable inventions
Article 53Exceptions to patentability
Article 54Novelty
Article 55Non-prejudicial disclosures
Article 56Inventive step
Article 57Industrial application
Article 58Entitlement to file a European patent application
Article 59Multiple applicants
Article 60Right to a European patent
Article 61European patent applications by persons not having the right to a European patent
Article 62Right of the inventor to be mentioned
Article 63Term of the European patent
Article 64Rights conferred by a European patent
Article 65Translation of the specification of the European patent
Article 66Equivalence of European filing with national filing
Article 67Rights conferred by a European patent application after publication
Article 68Effect of revocation of the European patent
Article 69Extent of protection
Article 70authentic text of a European patent application or European patent
Article 71Transfer and constitution of rights
Article 72Assignment
Article 73Contractual licensing
Article 74Law applicable
Article 75Filing of the European patent application
Article 76European divisional applications
Article 77Forwarding of European patent applications
Article 78Requirements of the European patent application
Article 79Designation of Contracting States
Article 80Date of filing
Article 81Designation of the inventor
Article 82Unity of invention
Article 83Disclosure of the invention
Article 84The claims
Article 85The abstract
Article 86Renewal fees for European patent applications
Article 87Priority right
Article 88Claiming priority
Article 89Effect of priority right
Article 90Examination on filing
Article 91Examination as to formal requirements
Article 92The drawing up of the European search report
Article 93Publication of a European patent application
Article 94Request for examination
Article 95Extension of the period within which requests for examination may be filed
Article 96Examination of the European patent application
Article 97Refusal or grant
Article 98Publication of a specification of the European patent
Article 99Opposition Divisions
Article 100Grounds for opposition
Article 101Examination of the opposition
Article 102Revocation or maintenance of the European patent
Article 103Publication of a new specification of the European patent
Article 104Costs
Article 105Intervention of the assumed infringer
Article 106Decisions subject to appeal
Article 107Persons entitled to appeal and to be parties to appeal proceedings
Article 108Time limit and form of appeal
Article 109Interlocutory revision
Article 110Examination of appeals
Article 111Decision in respect of appeals
Article 112Decision or opinion of the Enlarged Board of Appeal
Article 113Basis of decisions
Article 114Examination by the European Patent Office of its own motion
Article 115Observations by third parties
Article 116Oral proceedings
Article 117Taking of evidence
Article 118Unity of the European patent application of European patent
Article 119Notification
Article 120Time limits
Article 121Further processing of the European patent application
Article 122Restitutio in integrum
Article 123Amendments
Article 124Information concerning national patent applications
Article 125Reference to general principles
Article 126Termination of financial obligations
Article 127Register of European Patents
Article 128Inspection of files
Article 129Periodical publications
Article 130Exchanges of information
Article 131Administrative and legal co-operation
Article 132Exchange of publications
Article 133General principles of representation
Article 134Professional representatives
Article 135Request for the application of national procedure
Article 136Submission and transmission of the request
Article 137Formal requirements for conversion
Article 138Grounds for revocation
Article 139Rights of earlier date or the same date
Article 140National utility models and utility certificates
Article 141Renewal fees for European patents
Article 142Unitary patents
Article 143Special departments of the European Patent Office
Article 144Representation before special departments
Article 145Select committee of the Administrative Council
Article 146cover for expenditure for carrying out special tasks
Article 147Payments in respect of renewal fees for unitary patents
Article 148The European patent application as an object of property
Article 149Joint designation
Article 150Application of the Patent cooperation Treaty
Article 151The European Patent Office as a receiving Office
Article 152Filing and transmittal of the international application
Article 153The European Patent Office as a designated Office
Article 154The European Patent Office as an International Searching Authority
Article 155The European Patent Office as an International Preliminary Examing Authority
Article 156The European Patent Office as an elected Office
Article 157International search report
Article 158Publication of the international application and its supply to the European Patent Office
Article 159Administrative Council during a transitional period
Article 160Appointment of employees during a transitional period
Article 161First accounting period
Article 162Progressive expansion of the field of activity of the European Patent Office
Article 163Professional representatives during a transitional period
Article 164Implementing Regulations and Protocols
Article 165signature - Ratification
Article 166Accession
Article 167Reservations
Article 168Territorial field of application
Article 169Entry into force
Article 170Initial contribution
Article 171Duration of the convention
Article 172Revision
Article 173Disputes between Contracting States
Article 174Denunciation
Article 175Preservation of acquired rights
Article 176Financial rights and obligations of a former Contracting State
Article 177Languages of the convention
Article 178Transmission and notifications

Implementing regulations

Rule 1Derogations from the provisions concerning the language of the proceedings in written proceedings
Rule 2Derogations from the provisions concerning the language of the proceedings in oral proceedings
Rule 3(deleted)
Rule 4Language of a European divisional application
Rule 5Certification of translations
Rule 6Time limits and reduction of fees
Rule 7Legal authenticity of the translation of the European patent application
Rule 8Patent classification
Rule 9Allocation of duties to the departments of the first instance
Rule 10Presidium of the boards of Appeal
Rule 11Business distribution scheme for the Enlarged Board of appeal and adoption of its Rules of Procedure
Rule 12Administrative structure of the European Patent Office
Rule 13Suspension of proceedings
Rule 14Limitation of the option to withdraw the European patent application
Rule 15Filing of a new European patent application by the person entitled to apply
Rule 16Partial transfer of right by virtue of a final decision
Rule 17Designation of the inventor
Rule 18Publication of the mention of the inventor
Rule 19Rectification of the designation of an inventor
Rule 20Registering a transfer
Rule 21Registering of licences and other rights
Rule 22Special indications for the registration of a licence
Rule 23Certificate of exhibition
Rule 24General provisions
Rule 25Provisions for European divisional applications
Rule 26Request for grant
Rule 27Content of the description
Rule 28Deposit of biological material
Rule 29Form and content of claims
Rule 30Unity of invention
Rule 31Claims incurring fees
Rule 32Form of the drawings
Rule 33Form and content of the abstract
Rule 34Prohibited matter
Rule 35General provisions governing the presentation of the application documents
Rule 36Documents filed subsequently
Rule 37Payment for renewal fees
Rule 38Declaration of priority and priority documents
Rule 39Communication following the examination on filing
Rule 40Examination for certain physical requirements
Rule 41Rectification of deficiencies in the application documents
Rule 42Subsequent identification of the inventor
Rule 43Late-filed or missing drawings
Rule 44Content of the European search report
Rule 45Incomplete search
Rule 46European search report where the inventions lacks unity
Rule 47Definitive content of the abstract
Rule 48Technical preparations for publication
Rule 49Form of the publication of European patent applications and European search reports
Rule 50Information about publication
Rule 51Examination procedure
Rule 52Grant of the European patent to different applicants
Rule 53Technical preparations for publication and form of the specification of the European patent
Rule 54Certificate for a European patent
Rule 55Content of the notice of opposition
Rule 56Rejection of the notice of opposition as inadmissible
Rule 57Preparation for the examination of the opposition
Rule 58Examination of opposition
Rule 59Requests for documents
Rule 60Continuation of the opposition proceedings by the European Patent office of its own motion
Rule 61Transfer of the European patent
Rule 62Form of the new specification of the European patent in opposition proceedings
Rule 63Costs
Rule 64Content of the notice of appeal
Rule 65Rejection of the appeal as inadmissible
Rule 66Examination of appeals
Rule 67Reimbursement of appeal fees
Rule 68Form of decisions
Rule 69Noting of loss of rights
Rule 70Signature, name, seal
Rule 71Summons to oral proceedings
Rule 72Taking of evidence by the European Patent Office
Rule 73Commissioning of experts
Rule 74Costs of taking of evidence
Rule 75Conservation of evidence
Rule 76Minutes of oral proceedings and of taking of evidence
Rule 77General provisions on notifications
Rule 78Notification by post
Rule 79Notification by delivery by hand
Rule 80Public notification
Rule 81Notification to representatives
Rule 82Irregularities in the notification
Rule 83Calculation of time limits
Rule 84Duration of time limits
Rule 85Extension of time limits
Rule 86Amendment of the European patent application
Rule 87Different claims, description and drawings for different States
Rule 88Correction of errors in documents filed with the European Patent Office
Rule 89Correction of errors in decisions
Rule 90Interruption of proceedings
Rule 91Waiving of enforced recovery procedures
Rule 92Entries in the Register of European Patents
Rule 93Parts of the file not for inspection
Rule 94Procedures for the inspection of files
Rule 95Communication of information contained in the files
Rule 96Additional publications by the European Patent Offices
Rule 97Communications between the European Patent Office and the authorities of the Contracting States
Rule 98Inspection of files by or via courts or authorities of the Contracting States
Rule 99Procedure for letters rogatory
Rule 100Appointment of a common representative
Rule 101Authorisations
Rule 102Amendment of the list of professional representatives
Rule 103Information to the public in the event of conversion
Rule 104The European Patent Office as a receiving Office
Rule 105The European Patent Office as an International Searching Authority or International Preliminary Examining Authority
Rule 106The national fee

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