European Patent Office

26 March 2025 by Mathieu Klos

EPO statistics show surge in Unitary Patents

Demand for European patents with unitary effect is rising across Europe, even as total patent applications at the European Patent Office showed a slig ...

28 November 2024 by Mathieu Klos

CRISPR/Cas

Swerving the matter of granting genetic scissor patents at the EPO

This autumn, the EPO Boards of Appeal were supposed to issue landmark decisions in the battle for the basic patents on CRISPR/Cas9 technology. But the ...

11 October 2024 by Mathieu Klos

Novo Nordisk, semaglutide, opposition, weight-loss, diabetes

Blockbuster drug

Generic drug companies attack Novo Nordisk's diabetes and weight-loss drug

The Boards of Appeal of the European Patent Office have revoked two patents belonging to Novo Nordisk that are important for the administration of the ...

25 July 2024 by Mathieu Klos

Dabus, AI, Federal Court of Justice, patent application

Interview

Malte Köllner: "You can file a patent application on an AI-assisted invention"

Artificial intelligence cannot be an inventor. The Federal Court of Justice recently decided this for Germany. The court nevertheless allowed the appl ...

Legal Commentary

Opinion

"UPC pulls ripcord on CMS in time, but proximity to the EPO is questionable"

Last Friday the UPC declared it was to cooperate with the EPO on IT matters. Most importantly, it announced the development of a new case management s ...

24 July 2024 by Mathieu Klos

Sponsored Content NPE activity in Europe

European Patent Litigation and Non-Practicing Entities: A Large and Looming Threat

PAEs from the U.S are spreading to Europe, with eight out of the top ten most active NPEs in Europe being US-based companies. One in every seven infri ...

13 June 2024 by Unified Patents, LLC

24 May 2024 by Mathieu Klos

mRNA technology

Düsseldorf Regional Court can proceed with trial after EPO upholds Moderna patent

Moderna has landed an important victory at the European Patent Office. The Opposition Division granted a key mRNA patent in the face of an objection f ...

Legal Commentary

Boards of Appeal, BoA, EPO, quality, Annual Report

Opinion

"Figures show the EPO Boards of Appeal are highly productive, but it's only half the story"

The EPO Boards of Appeal have published their Annual Report 2024 and one aspect in particular stands out: in line with the current strategy, the court ...

21 May 2024 by Mathieu Klos

EPO Enlarged Board of Appeal

EBA to consider claim construction questions in heat-not-burn dispute

In Yunnan Tobacco vs. Philip Morris, the EPO Boards of Appeal will refer key questions on claim construction to the Enlarged Board of Appeal. If the E ...

22 April 2024 by Amy Sandys

20 March 2024 by Amy Sandys

EPO Patent Index shows UPC effect as companies request unitary protection

Statistics released by the European Patent Office indicate that companies filing patents in Europe are increasingly interested in the Unitary Patent, ...

1 March 2024 by Amy Sandys

Pharmaceuticals

Akebia defends anaemia drug patents at EPO amid huge Fibrogen battle

Akebia Therapeutics has successfully defended two patents integral to a drug used to treat anaemia resulting from chronic kidney disease. The result i ...

Legal Commentary

EPO, Administrative Council, patent quality

28 February 2024 by Mathieu Klos

EPO staff petition Administrative Council to improve HR and patent quality

For weeks, some European Patent Office staff have been calling on management to reduce work pressure and improve quality in the granting of patents. N ...

13 February 2024 by Amy Sandys

Biotechnology

EPO revokes two more DNA-sequencing patents despite Illumina appeal

The EPO Boards of Appeal have confirmed the revocation of two more Illumina patents concerning DNA-sequencing technology. The same boards also issued ...