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G 1/23 confirms that products placed on the market before the effective date of a European patent application constitute prior art, regardless of whether they can be reproduced

G 1/23 confirms that products placed on the market before the effective date of a European patent application constitute prior art, regardless of whether they can be reproduced

by Carolyn Haywood | Sep 30, 2025 | EPO

Background to the referral The G 1/23 referral came from Board 3.3.03 in the consideration of T 0438/19, an appeal against the decision of an opposition division to reject an opposition against a European patent directed to a material for encapsulating a solar cell...
Going it Alone: The EPO Chooses a Different Path to Claim Interpretation to the Courts

Going it Alone: The EPO Chooses a Different Path to Claim Interpretation to the Courts

by Sean Hutchinson | Sep 16, 2025 | EPO

We reported in our article of June 2025 that the decision of the EPO’s Enlarged Board of Appeal in G 1/24 seemed likely to “force a monumental change in practice at the EPO, whose examiners are very unlikely to now be able to raise objections against the claims of a...
New Referral to the Enlarged Board of Appeal: The Description Amendment Saga Goes On!

New Referral to the Enlarged Board of Appeal: The Description Amendment Saga Goes On!

by Sean Hutchinson | Jul 31, 2025 | EPO

Background As reported in several of our earlier articles, it has long been the practice of the European Patent Office (“EPO”) to require the description of a European patent application to be amended upon allowance of the claims to ensure that the description does...
EPO’s Enlarged Board of Appeal Issues Much-Anticipated Decision in G 1/24

EPO’s Enlarged Board of Appeal Issues Much-Anticipated Decision in G 1/24

by Sean Hutchinson | Jun 18, 2025 | EPO

Headnote Summary In case G 1/24, the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office (“EPO”) had been asked to answer the following questions: “Question 1 Is Article 69(1), second sentence, EPC and Article 1 of the Protocol on the Interpretation of Article 69...
Use Claims Can be Method Claims in Disguise, says the EPO

Use Claims Can be Method Claims in Disguise, says the EPO

by Sean Hutchinson | May 20, 2025 | EPO

It is generally accepted in the world of IP that all inventions fall into one of four categories: products, methods, apparatuses (i.e. products for carrying out specific processes), and uses. Thus, when drafting a new patent application, an important first step is to...
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