News
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The G1/24 Referral: What to Expect and Why It Matters
8 May 2025Read more >The Enlarged Board of Appeal (EBoA) of the European Patent Office (EPO) is set to decide on the referral G1/24 from appeal case T439/22. The central issue is whether the description and figures should be utilised to interpret the claims when evaluating patentability. While the referral is primarily concerned with post-grant opposition proceedings, it may […]
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EPO Announces Pilot Program for AI-Assisted Minutes of Oral Proceedings
6 May 2025Read more >The European Patent Office (EPO) has announced a pilot program aimed at enhancing the preparation of minutes of oral proceedings held via videoconference (VC) through the integration of AI transcription tools. Starting in May 2025 and running until the end of the year, selected examining division and opposition division oral proceedings will take part in […]
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EU Design rights from 1st May 2025
8 April 2025Read more >The new legislation governing Design rights in the European Union, the European Design Regulation (EUDR), enters into force on 1 May 2025. Several changes come into force with the new Regulation, although there are many further provisions that require implementing secondary legislation and will only be applicable later, in 2026 and 2027. Here are the […]
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CJEU determines that EU courts (including the UPC) have global reach for patent infringement proceedings
27 February 2025Read more >On 25 February, 2025, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) delivered a significant ruling in the case of BSH Hausgeräte GmbH v. Electrolux AB – C-330/22. This decision addresses the jurisdictional boundaries for EU courts, seemingly allowing them to handle infringement actions relating to both EU and non-EU patent rights, which could streamline litigation […]
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Irreproducible Products and the implications of G 1/23
21 February 2025Read more >In the run-up to the oral proceedings for G 1/23 (“Solar cell”), due to be held on 12 March 2025, we consider the potential changes in practice at the European Patent Office (EPO) in relation to the disclosures of irreproducible products. Previously, in G 1/92, a cumulative test was set in order to determine whether […]
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UK Court of Appeal: No SPCs for 2nd Medical Uses
18 February 2025Read more >The UK Court of Appeal (CoA) recently issued its ruling in Merck Serono v Comptroller, confirming that supplementary protection certificates (SPCs) are not available for second medical uses of pharmaceutically active products. The case concerned Merck’s SPC application for cladribine, used to treat multiple sclerosis. The UK Patent Office, in accordance with Article 3(d) of […]
