The European Patent Office has started a study to see whether a so-called "grace period" should be introduced into the European Patent system. Currently, the novelty requirement under the European Patent Convention (EPC) set out in Article 54 is an absolute novelty standard under which any disclosure made by the...
Accelerating Patent Grants in Europe
Accelerating Patent Grants in Europe through the Patent Prosecution Highway We’re often being told that it takes too long for patents to be granted. Recently, we were asked to support a client that had received a favorable search report during the international phase of a patent filed under the Patent...
Database Management Systems – the European Approach
On March 1, 2021, the European Patent Office (EPO) updated its Guidelines and the new update includes a substantial new section on how to patent database management systems. Given the importance of data and database protection for, e.g., artificial intelligence, this update could be significant in the next few years....
European Patent Office – draft new guidelines
The European Patent Office revises its guidelines for patent examination every two years and these normally appear in November. The last update was due in November 2020, but has been delayed because of the Covid19 pandemic and these will now come into effect on 1 March 2021. A preliminary version...
Patenting Artificial Intelligence – what do you need to disclose?
One of the challenges in filing a patent application is the level of detail of the invention in the description. Earlier this year, the European Patent Office’s Board of Appeal provided some helpful insights.