European Patent Law

The European Patent Office provides a uniform patent registration system.

The European Patent Office (EPO) provides uniform patent protection in 40 European countries. The EPO is not part of the European Union, but rather an agreement by several countries to have a uniform system of approving and recognizing patents.

History

The EPO was established in 1973 by 20 countries and set up a system of uniform patent recognition that went into affect in 1977.

Membership

Membership has grown from the initial 20 countries to include all of the European Union countries, Croatia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Monaco, Norway, San Marino, Switzerland and Turkey.

Length

The standard term of a European patent is 20 years from the filing date. Some patents, such as medical or plant protection product patents, where the length of the approval procedure diminishes the useful life of the patent, may be eligible for an extension past the 20 years.

Granting Patent

A European patent gives the owner of the patent a valid property right that is recognized by the courts of the member countries.

Consolidation

By having one system that issues patents, the inventor only pays for the application process once, rather than in each of the participating countries.

References

• European Patent Office: About Us