Video Conference oral proceedings before the Boards of Appeal

The Boards of Appeal now intend to permit the use of video conferencing for participating in oral proceedings. However, the use of video conferencing will only be conducted with the agreement of all parties. A dedicated room located at the premises of the Boards of Appeal in Haar, Munich will be made available for limited numbers of the public to attend via video conferencing.

At the same time, the Boards of Appeal announced a plan to resume oral proceedings at their premises in Haar. Since the beginning of COVID-19, the Boards of Appeal have postponed all oral proceedings held on their premises up to 15 May 2020. If the public health situation permits, the Boards of Appeal envisage resuming oral proceedings at their premises in Haar from 18 May 2020 but only to a limited extent. Parties will be contacted accordingly if this affects them.

As the Boards of Appeal begin to resume oral proceedings at their premises, the arrangements surrounding entry to the Boards of Appeal premises have been updated. They include:

Parties will be requested to confirm that they expect to be able to attend in person and they do not anticipate being affected by travel restrictions. Parties and their representatives will be asked to inform the EPO as soon as possible whether they plan to attend.

Parties will be requested to confirm that they expect to be able to attend in person and they do not anticipate being affected by travel restrictions. Parties and their representatives will be asked to inform the EPO as soon as possible whether they plan to attend

• Anyone entering the Boards of Appeal premises will be asked to complete a simple screening questionnaire upon arrival. Any person replying to one of the questions in the affirmative will be denied access to the Boards of Appeal premises

• In the light of the current restrictions, in particular the need for social distancing, parties are requested to consider whether all representatives and accompanying persons need to attend

• It will be possible for members of the public to attend oral proceedings. However, in view of the current circumstances, only limited places will be available. Visitors interested in attending oral proceedings are therefore encouraged to announce their interest well in advance

• Strict sanitary measures will be put in place to ensure that oral proceedings are held in optimum conditions. These measures will include, in particular, rules on minimum physical distancing and the requirement to wear a face mask on the way to the oral proceedings room. Parties, representatives and other visitors are asked to bring their own face masks