European patent law. Law and procedure under the EPC and PCT

European patent law: law and procedure under the EPC and PCT

In recent years, revolutionary changes have occurred which affect the patent system throughout the world. These changes have been brought about by the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and the European Patent Convention (EPC).

This book has its origins in Germany. Training notes were collected together and published from courses given by the authors, Dr Matthias Brandhi-Dohrn and Dr Stephan Gruber, for German speaking candidates for law paper D of the qualifying examination for European patent attorneys. After publication of the third edition of the German book, it was thought that a corresponding English language edition would make the work available to a much wider readership and particularly help candidates for the examination from non-German speaking countries. The patent attorney, Ian Muir, for many years an examiner on, and currently the chairman of, the committee setting paper D, became involved in the translation of the third edition and its revision and expansion into its present form, as the first English edition.

For this edition, the work has been expanded to include the case law of the European Boards of Appeal as published up to the end of May 1998. Additionally, the book includes sections placing the EPC and PCT in their international context and outlining the different and related international intellectual property law treaties.

The book is for candidates for the law paper, newcomers to the profession and experienced patent practitioners. It aims to provide a fundamental, concise but comprehensive coverage of the EPC and PCT law and procedure relating to the obtaining of European patents through both the direct European route and the so-called Euro-PCT route. The book is laid out to follow, roughly, the course of applications, with consideration of priority and filing at the beginning, appeals and infringement at the end, and formal and substantive examination between.