It’s never going to be plain sailing when you are president of the EPO. António Campinos has so far, on the face of it, at least, steered into calmer seas than his predecessor Benoît Battistelli.
In fact, it was a decision of his to overturn one of Battistelli’s more controversial moves that went someway to landing Campinos his place in this year’s list.
Campinos announced that the Boards of Appeal (BoA) would return to the EPO’s Munich headquarters – less than five years after Battistelli ordered them to be relocated to the Munich suburb of Haar, 12km from the city centre. A return date has yet to be set.
The announcement was actually made in the final two weeks of 2021, but it set the tone for 2022.
Since then, it has been a mixed picture for Campinos. On the one hand, he can enjoy the news that the unitary patent – which the EPO will eventually administer – is finally coming into being.
He was also elected for a second five-year term in July, which will begin in 2023.
The threat of worker unrest has not gone away, however.
Disgruntled workers downed tools again in March in the third strike since Campinos’s tenure began in 2018.
Reasons for that strike include an increased workload and an alleged failure by the EPO to commit to international labour standards unless compelled to do so by the UN-based International Labour Organization.
A quiet 2023 is unlikely.
