Pandemic measures cease but oral proceedings continue

The EPO has recently announced the cessation of pandemic measures on the conducting of proceedings, with the announcement (here) that the EPO will continue to hear oral proceedings via video conference.

This is positive news for clients in the UK seeking Patent Protection in the EU and for patent applications being processed at the European Patent Office, which is located in Munich, Germany. The confirmation that oral hearings can be held remotely provides a great benefit and levels the litigation playing field for UK applications, between using a UK and German lawyer (European patent attorney) as there will be no home advantage in terms of travel for our German counterparts. Instead of having to send over a representative (lawyer) from the UK to attend hearings, the hearings are now established primarily by videoconference.

At Commercial Patents we have a wealth of experience in conducting hearings by videoconference and find that doing so from our offices and find that doing so has further improved the results for our clients as we are able to utilise the full force of our experienced support staff to conduct additional research and find out further intimation in support of our European Patent Attorneys in the lead up to the hearing and during the course of the hearing.

This will also have the added benefit of helping us achieve our goal of reducing our carbon footprint, as well as reducing the final cost of litigating patent proceedings for our clients, and optimizing the services we provide.

Extending your patent protection to Europe can be key for many businesses, and is one of our many specialities. The above article is about when such applications become contentious and hearings are necessary. This is part of our extended range of professional services to ensure that you as a company are properly covered beyond initial, foundational applications to cover your patent rights, such as initially in the UK.

For more information on how we can support you, your business and your invention please contact the highly experienced Patent team at Patent Protect by email by telephone +01629 700350, or by sending us a message and we will be happy to advise and support you.