European Patent Convention
The European Patent Convention (EPC) or Convention on the Grant of European Patents of 5 October 1973 is a legal text instituting the European Patent Organisation and the system according to which European patents are granted.It is indeed possible to get patents in European countries with a single, harmonized procedure before the European Patent Office. A single patent application may be filed at the European Patent Office at Munich, at its branch at The Hague or at one national patent office of a Contracting State, if the national law of the State so permits. If the patent application is filed at the European Patent Office, the text may be in English, French, or German, or, under certain particular conditions, in some other languages provided that a translation is filed subsequently. The prosecution of European patent applications includes a prior art search and an patentability examination until grant. Once a European patent is granted, protection is automatically effective in the designated States having as a national language the language of the proceeding of the application (it can only be English, French or German) but, in general, the protection only becomes effective in the other designated States after a translation of the specification (including the claims) is filed at the national Patent Office. Once the translation of the specification is filed in any particular territory, the European patent becomes equivalent to a national patent in that country as far as the rights conferred are concerned.
There is currently no single European Union-wide patent. Since the 1970s, there has been and there is still right now a lot of work and talk going on in order to create a Community Patent in the European Union.
In 1973, the Munich Diplomatic Conference for the setting up of a European System for the Grant of Patents took place and the Convention was then signed.
The Convention entered into force on October 7, 1977 for the following first countries: Belgium, Germany (then West Germany), France, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Switzerland and United Kingdom, and on May 1, 1978 for Sweden. However, the first patent applications were filed on June 1, 1978 only (date fixed by the Administrative Council).
Subsequently, the Convention entered into force for Italy (December 1, 1978), Austria (May 1, 1979), Liechtenstein (April 1, 1980), Greece and Spain (October 1, 1986), Denmark (January 1, 1990), Monaco (December 1, 1991), Portugal (January 1, 1992), Ireland (August 1, 1992), Finland (March 1, 1996), Cyprus (April 1, 1998), Turkey (November 1, 2000), Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia and Slovakia (July 1, 2002), Slovenia (December 1, 2002), Hungary (January 1, 2003), Romania (March 1, 2003) and Poland (March 1, 2004).
The Convention is now (as of March 14, 2004) in force in 28 countries.
The content of the Convention includes several texts in addition to the main 178 articles. These additional texts are "the Implementing Regulations", "the Protocol on Recognition", "the Protocol on Privileges and Immunities", "the Protocol on Centralisation" and "the Protocol on the Interpretation of Article 69".
Substantive patent law and procedural provisions form very important part of the EPC.
One of the most important article of the Convention, Article 52(1), entitled "Patentable inventions", states: "European patents shall be granted for any inventions which are susceptible of industrial application, which are new and which involve an inventive step". This constitutes the basic patentability provision under the EPC. However, the EPC provides further indications on what is patentable, by introducing exceptions. There are exceptions by virtue of the nature of the patent system (Article 52(2) and (3)) and exceptions by virtue of policy (Articles 52(4) and 53). Discoveries, scientific theories, mathematical methods, aesthetic creations, schemes, rules and methods for performing mental acts, playing games or doing business, programs for computers and presentations of information (exceptions by virtue of the nature of the patent system) are excluded from patentability only to the extent that the above subject-matter or activity are taken as such. These exceptions have been introduced as a way to illustrate what cannot be patentable due to the nature of the patent system (a patentable subject-matter should usually be directed to some physical product or process). Other exceptions include methods for treatment of the human body by surgery, inventions contrary to "ordre public" or morality and plant or animal varieties (exceptions by virtue of policy).
See Software patent for an discussion of Article 52.
History
Content of the Convention
Substantive patent law
This part of the Convention includes provisions on patentability, provisions related to the right to a European patent and more.Procedural provisions
The Convention also includes filing requirements provisions, provisions regarding the procedure up to grant, the opposition procedure, appeals and more.Contracting States
Cf. European Patent Organisation.Related articles
European Patent Organisation, European Patent Office.External links