What is the status of the initiative to make the independence of the boards of appeal more visible and to revise the European Patent Convention accordingly?
The initiative has resulted in what is a complete draft for revision of the European Patent Convention, with the goal of organisationally separating the boards of appeal from the European Patent Office. However, in order to implement the initiative, a Diplomatic Conference attended by the representatives of the member states of the European Patent Organisation will be necessary. The boards of appeal, together with their associated administrative services, would then no longer be integrated into the European Patent Office as Directorate-General 3 but would become a separate body within the European Patent Organisation.
