VI. The EPO's Unitary Patent Protection Division
Introduction
48A "Unitary Patent Protection Division" has been set up at the EPO as a special department to deal with Unitary Patents. It is responsible for all the EPO's additional tasks relating to Unitary Patents referred to in Article 9(1) Regulation (EU) No 1257/2012 and entrusted to it by the participating Member States under Rule 1(1) UPR (see OJ EPO 2022, A69). As to the format of oral proceedings before the Unitary Patent Protection Division, please see Supplementary publication 3, OJ EPO 2023.
49Under Article 9 Regulation (EU) No 1257/2012, the participating Member States have entrusted the EPO with the following tasks:
– receiving and examining requests for unitary effect
– registering unitary effect
– publishing translations during the transitional period
– setting up and maintaining the Register for unitary patent protection
– collecting renewal fees for Unitary Patents
– distributing a share of the annual renewal fees to the participating Member States
– administering the compensation scheme to support certain applicants.
50The EPO departments entrusted with the procedures laid down in the EPC, namely the search, examining and opposition divisions and the Boards of Appeal, have no responsibilities in relation to Unitary Patents.