Cyra Nargolwalla comments EPO’s statement regarding oral proceedings conducted by videoconference

Cyra Nargolwalla, Managing partner at Plasseraud IP, comments on the European Patent Office’s (EPO) announcement that from 1 February 2023, the Boards of Appeal is no longer following measures aiming to lower the spread of COVID-19, in a new article of Managing IP.

On January 25 2023, the Boards of Appeal of the EPO issued a statement announcing the cease of pandemic measures but the continuity of conducting oral proceedings using videoconferencing (VICO), on a case-by-case basis. This is an indication of the Boards of Appeal’s desire to lower its carbon footprint and reach the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, in particular Goal 13 - Climate Action - by 2030.

In this context, Cyra says: “In-person oral proceedings should only be allowed in exceptional circumstances where a party can clearly show that they cannot present their case by VICO”.

Read the article written by Rory O’Neill (for subscribers only): “Challenges likely over BoA’s VICO move: sources”