154th meeting of the Administrative Council of the European Patent Organisation (Munich, 13 and 14 December 2017)

The Administrative Council of the European Patent
Organisation held its 154th meeting in Munich on 13 and 14 December 2017 under
the chairmanship of Christoph ERNST (DE).

The Administrative Council noted the activities
reports given by its Chairman and by the President of the European Patent
Office, Benoît BATTISTELLI. In the ensuing discussion the Council welcomed the very
positive results the Office was expecting for 2017, praised the management and
staff for their achievements and encouraged all to progress in terms of social
dialogue. The Council further noted the oral reports by the chairpersons of the
Supervisory Board of the Reserve Funds for Pensions and Social Security (RFPSS)
and the Budget and Finance Committee on their recent meetings.

A series of elections and appointments was then on
the agenda:

• the
  Council elected Gerard BARRETT (IE) as deputy Chairman of the Budget and
  Finance Committee. It further appointed Viktor LUSZCZ (HU) to the Boards of Appeal
  Committee;
• in the
  case of the RFPSS Supervisory Board in its new composition, the Council
  appointed with effect from 1 January 2018 its two own representatives and one
  alternate, as well as the four external expert members and one alternate,
  including the new Chairman Michel LIND;
• the
  Council also decided on appointments to the new Appeals Committee of its Chair,
  Paul MAHONEY, the two deputy Chairs and two further members. It also appointed
  the Chairman, Markus MOHLER, and the members of the Council Disciplinary
  Committee, all with effect from 1 January 2018;
• and
  finally, the Council decided on a number of appointments and re-appointments as
  technically qualified members of the Boards of Appeal and as external legally
  qualified members of the Enlarged Board.

In respect of legal affairs the Council adopted in
particular the Office proposals on fees for 2018-2020 under the existing
working agreements on search co-operation.

Turning to personnel policy matters the Council conducted
a general debate on the orientation paper submitted by the Office, regarding
modernisation of the employment framework. It supported the principle of
introducing more flexibility and expected the strategic, legal and financial
outcomes of the discussion to be reflected in the concrete assessments and proposed
modalities the Office would submit in early 2018.

The Council also addressed a number of financial
matters. Firstly, it unanimously approved the draft budget for 2018 as well as
the budget estimates for the four following years. In particular it endorsed
the related Office proposals regarding a substantial reduction in PCT fees and
online filing fees and the increase in the appeal fee. It also approved the
yearly outcome of applying the salary method and further measures in the field
of pensions.

In a closed session, the Council took a final
decision in a disciplinary case against an employee appointed by the Council –
a case which had attracted significant public attention. This decision was
taken with due regard to all relevant elements. The Council expressed its
satisfaction at having closed the case. In particular, it underlined its
expectation that now – after a long period of intense debate – legal peace
would be restored.

Council Secretariat