Stakeholder Quality Assurance Panels 2024

In line with the commitment of the European Patent Office (EPO) to transparency and stakeholder engagement, this year’s Stakeholder Quality Assurance Panels (SQAPs) took place from 21 to 23 October. The panels provided unique insights into quality and diverse perspectives on the files reviewed.

An extended scope to cover different stages of the patent granting process

An impressive total of 61 assessors participated, 36 of whom were European Patent Attorneys and 25 EPO specialists. They jointly reviewed and evaluated 108 patent files across 18 technical panels, covering the fields of digital technologies; electronics and physics; health and agri-food; infrastructure and mechanics; energy, mobility and space technologies as well as materials and production.

This year, the scope of the files assessed was extended. The evaluated search and written opinion files included cases that had been withdrawn, granted or refused. In addition to the sessions dedicated to search reports and written opinions and grants, a new session was entirely dedicated to refusals.

In-depth exchanges among assessors and new opportunities for observers

This broader range of topics provided a more comprehensive evaluation of EPO quality practices across different stages of the patent granting process. The groundbreaking panels will report their key findings at the SACEPO WP/Q on 26 November and a more detailed report will feature in the Quality Report 2024. Meanwhile, a few assessors have shared with us their first impressions about this exercise, with one commenting:

It is really a deep exchange, far deeper than the one you usually get when you are simply talking about a case with an examiner. So it is a very rare opportunity for both sides. I learnt a lot. And I think the people from the EPO also learnt a lot.

For further impressions, please see the video

The external assessors, comprising members of the SACEPO Working Party on Quality (WP/Q), were joined by nominees from epi (the Institute of Professional Representatives before the EPO) and BusinessEurope. The internal assessors from the EPO included senior experts and auditors from the Directorate Quality Audit (DQA).

The 2024 SQAPs also introduced new opportunities for observers. While SACEPO WP/Q members and EPO representatives have traditionally attended the panels as observers, this year saw invitations extended to epi and BusinessEurope as well. In total, over 70 observers attended the SQAP sessions, underscoring the broad interest in and support for this initiative.

About SQAPs

The organisation of SQAPs is a key initiative for further improving the quality of EPO products and services together with users. SQAPs identify best practices and areas for improvement and, in 2023, provided valuable input for the EPO’s Quality Action Plan 2024. The findings of last year’s SQAPs sessions have been published in the Quality Report 2023.