II. BUSINESS DISTRIBUTION 2024
II.2 - Business distribution scheme of the Legal Board of Appeal for 2024
The Presidium,
pursuant to Rule 12b, paragraph 4, of the Implementing Regulations to the European Patent Convention,
having regard to Article 1, paragraph 1, of the Rules of Procedure of the Boards of Appeal,
adopts the following business distribution scheme:
Article 1
Members of the Legal Board of Appeal
The members of the Legal Board of Appeal are:
Chair:
Ingo Beckedorf
Members:
Jean Geschwind*
Tamás Bokor
Christopher Heath
Bernhard Müller
David Rogers
Theodora Karamanli
Fritz Blumer
Lukas Bühler
Dorothea Prietzel-Funk
Robert Cramer
Christof Schmidt
Peter Guntz
Wilhelm Ungler
Olga Loizou
Sofía Fernández de Córdoba
Martina Blasi
Richard Winkelhofer
Yvonne Podbielski
Jeannine Hoppe
Georg Decker
Carl Josefsson
Aurélie Jimenez
Roberto Romandini
Nikolaus Obrovski
Anna Bacchin
Eric Mille
Claes Almberg
Karoline Kerber-Zubrzycka
Frédéric Bostedt
Laurence Basterreix
Monika Millet
Birgit Burm-Herregodts
Stefanie Ruhwinkel
Article 2
Composition of the Board for a particular appeal
(1) The Chair shall determine the composition of the Board responsible for deciding on the appeal from amongst the Board members.
(2) In determining the composition, the Chair shall in particular take account of the workload of each member and the language requirements of the case.
(3) Where appeals pending before the Board are closely linked, in particular by involving similar legal or factual questions, the Chair may order that the Board shall decide on them in the same composition.
Article 3
Replacement of members
If a member cannot or can no longer participate in a case for which they have been designated, the Chair shall designate another member of the Board to replace that member, having regard in particular to the criteria indicated in Article 2, paragraph 2.
Article 4
Exclusion and objection
(1) For the purpose of taking a decision on exclusion or objection under Article 24, paragraph 4, EPC, the Chair in the particular appeal or other members concerned shall be replaced by their alternates.
(2) The alternate to the Chair or another member shall be the next member on the list as set out in Article 1, with the first member on the list being the alternate to the last one on the list.
(3) If the alternate to the Chair or to another member is unavailable, the next member on the list as set out in Article 1 shall become the alternate.
Article 5
Term of validity
This business distribution scheme shall apply from 1 January 2024 until 31 December 2024.
Done at Haar on 4 December 2023
For the Presidium
The Chair
C. JOSEFSSON
* The Chair's deputy is indicated by an asterisk (*).