European Patent System: Significant Changes Introduced

By Sebastian Moore (Herbert Smith LLP)
in 1/15/2008 Issue of EuroWatch published by
WorldTrade Executive, Inc.

The European Patent Convention (“EPC 2000”) came
into force on 13th December 2007, introducing significant
changes to the European patent system and the text of the
original EPC 1973.

Stakeholders should be aware of how the changes to
the European patent system may affect the granting and
enforcement of European patents. Many of the changes
are complex and technical and, given the importance of
value attaching to patents, it is inevitable that some of the
questions arising out of the scope of these amendments
will need to be clarified by the EPO and the national
courts.

The EPC has been updated for a number of reasons.
In particular, account had to be taken of developments
in international law, including the TRIPS agreement and
the Patent Law Treaty 2000. For example, the EPC 2000
clarifies the fact that, in accordance with the requirements
of TRIPS, patents can now be granted for any inventions
in all fields of technology provided they are new and
comprise an inventive step.

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