13 April 2021
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President António Campinos addressed Members of the European Parliament’s Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) on the latest developments in the European patent system on 12 April.
The EPO President’s participation at the JURI committee meeting, held by videoconference, provided an opportunity to exchange views with MEPs, particularly on the role of patents and innovation and the EPO’s efforts to create a sustainable patent system. It underlined the importance of the European patent system to the success of EU policies on innovation, industry and SMEs and for providing the incentive for ground-breaking research.
In his speech, and the subsequent question-and-answer session, Mr. Campinos highlighted the contribution of innovation in dealing with the COVID-19 crisis: “Behind the advances and the breakthroughs is a solid intellectual property system. One that doesn’t just support the commercialisation of new technologies that save lives, but also generates the kind of economic impact that can help Europe get back on its feet.” In this context, the EPO President also stressed that teaching businesses and inventors about the potential of intellectual property is fundamental, especially for SMEs.
Referring to the latest developments on the Unitary Patent, the EPO President emphasised the importance of this European project for exploiting the full potential of the single market, and for supporting innovation and economic recovery. “Europe needs the Unitary Patent to become a reality, probably now more than ever,” he said.
Looking ahead, Mr Campinos underlined that enhancing co-operation between the EPO and EU institutions was an important part of the EPO’s Strategic Plan 2023 and offered support and technical expertise to policymakers with regard to patents.
The last meeting with the JURI Committee took place in 2017.
