Authorized representative before the European Patent Office
An authorized representative before the European Patent Office ( English European Patent Attorney ) is entitled to represent natural or legal persons before the European Patent Office .
Approved representatives are mostly freelance national patent attorneys or employed patent specialists. The European Patent Office keeps a list in which all professional representatives are entered. In addition to the authorized representatives, lawyers are also authorized to represent, but this does not matter in practice.
Job description and activity
The freelancers among the authorized representatives have a place of business, the employees have a job in the territory of one of the contracting states of the European Patent Convention (EPC).
The job of the authorized representative is to file patent applications with the European Patent Office and to represent his clients or his company in patent granting or opposition proceedings. This usually also includes monitoring the relevant deadlines and the timely payment of fees.
education
Approved representative before the European Patent Office can be: Any natural person who
a) is a national of a Contracting State,
b) has its registered office or place of work in a Contracting State and
c) has passed the European qualifying examination,
can be entered on the list of professional representatives.
or
For a period of one year from the date on which the accession of a State to this Convention takes effect, entry on this list may also be requested by any natural person who
a) is a national of a Contracting State,
b) has its registered office or place of work in the State which has acceded to the Convention, and
c) is authorized to represent natural or legal persons in the field of patents before the central authority for industrial property protection of this state. If this authority is not subject to the requirement of a special professional qualification, the person must have regularly exercised this representation in this state for at least five years.
Admission to the European qualifying examination
Only applicants who meet the following requirements at the time of the examination will be admitted to the European proficiency test:
a) Qualification
Applicants must be qualified in a scientific or technical field, for example in the field of biology, biochemistry, chemistry, electronics, pharmacology or physics.
All decisions on admission are made on the basis of Article 11 (1) a) of the regulations on the European qualifying examination (VEP), as well as rules 11 to 14 of the implementing provisions for these regulations.
b) work experience
Applicants must have completed an internship under the supervision of a professional representative before the EPO or have been involved in patent matters as an employee in a company based in a contracting state.
The compulsory practical experience is very important because a large part of the knowledge that a European patent agent must have is acquired during this practical training. During this time, applicants must have been involved in a variety of activities related to patent applications and patents.
Periods of professional experience are only recognized if they have been acquired after completing the required qualification. The practical training must be completed before the exam date.
EPO examiners can register for the examination if they have been examiners for at least three years.