EPO to abolish the “10 day rule”

The EPO has decided that the so called “10 day rule” that gives applicants and/or representatives extra time to respond to many official communications is to be dropped as from 1 November 2023.

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G2/21 – Plausibility

The Enlarged Board of Appeal of the EPO have issued a decision, G 2/21, on plausibility. The Enlarged Board of Appeal has confirmed the established practice that post-published evidence may be considered to support a technical effect for inventive step. However, the technical effect must be derived from the application as filed.

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EPO announces increase in official fees from 1 April 2023

The European Patent Office (EPO) has announced that the official fee schedule for European patents will be revised from 1 April 2023, resulting in an increase of around 5% on most fees.

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Unitary patent (UP) and Unified Patent Court (UPC) will go live on 1 June 2023

Germany has deposited its instrument of ratification and, as such, the Unitary patent and Unified Patent Court will go live on 1 June 2023, with the sunrise period starting on 1 March 2023.

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