C. PROCEDURE BEFORE SEARCH, EXAMINING AND OPPOSITION DIVISIONS
C.3.1 Utilisation scheme - permanent scheme
Decision of the President of the European Patent Office dated 9 December 2010 exempting applicants claiming the priority of a first filing made in Japan, the United Kingdom or the United States of America from filing a copy of the search results under Rule 141(1) EPC – utilisation scheme 1,2,3
The President of the European Patent Office, having regard to Rules 141(1) and (2) and 70b(1) and (2) of the European Patent Convention (EPC), has decided as follows:
Article 1
Exemption under Rule 141(2) EPC from filing a copy of the search results
The European Patent Office shall include in the file of a European patent application a copy of the search results referred to in Rule 141(1) EPC, thus exempting the applicant from filing said copy, where the priority of a first filing made in one of the following states is claimed:
- Japan
- United Kingdom
- United States of America
Article 2
Entry into force
This decision shall enter into force on 1 January 2011 and shall apply to European patent applications and international applications filed on or after that date.
Done at Munich, 9 December 2010
Benoît BATTISTELLI
President
1 See notice from the European Patent Office dated 28 July 2010 concerning amended Rule 141 EPC and new Rule 70b EPC – utilisation scheme, OJ EPO 2010, 410.
2 See also decision of the President of the European Patent Office dated 5 October 2010 on the filing of copies of search results under Rule 141(1) EPC – utilisation scheme, OJ EPO 2010, 600.
3 See notice from the European Patent Office dated 9 December 2010 concerning exemption under Rule 141(2) EPC from filing a copy of the search results – utilisation scheme, OJ EPO 2011, 64.