Archambeau loses key powers over EUIPO contract row
The drama at the EUIPO continued to escalate last month. Reporter Rory O’Neill revealed that the office had suspended key administrative powers held by executive director Christian Archambeau.
Jorma Hanski, chairperson of the EUIPO management board, sent an email to EUIPO staff on March 7 to inform them of the news.
The decision was taken at an extraordinary meeting of the management board on March 6 after Archambeau filed a claim for compensation over the non-renewal of his contract.
Archambeau is seeking compensation worth €400,000 ($426,000) in lost earnings and €75,000 in damages, sources with knowledge of the meeting told Managing IP.
The story quickly became one of Managing IP’s most read of the last few years.
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Council chasing EUIPO for Archambeau assessment
Later in March, it was revealed that the Council of the EU is chasing the EUIPO management board for an assessment of Christian Archambeau’s performance as executive director.
The council told the management board in a letter dated March 22, and seen by Managing IP, that it needed the assessment to decide whether Archambeau should get another term.
The council, which has ultimate oversight over the EUIPO, has yet to formally ratify that decision.
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EPO under fire from staff reps amid IPQC criticisms
Sticking with IP offices, the debate over patent quality at the EPO continued to simmer last month after a staff committee backed a group of in-house counsel’s claims that patent quality standards are in decline.
Reporter Rory O’Neill revealed that the office’s central staff committee (CSC), which represents EPO staff in consultative meetings with management, had published an internal bulletin at the end of February backing criticisms by a group of in-house counsel called the Industry Patent Quality Charter (IPQC).
The CSC said EPO management has focused on productivity gains over substantive quality for the past decade.
Meanwhile, the report also revealed that the EPO has offered a follow-up meeting with the IPQC. The two met initially on February 3 to discuss the group’s claims that the EPO no longer prioritises full search and examination over speedy patent grants.
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India opens legal market to foreign law firms
Away from Europe, our Asia reporter was among the first to cast her eye over proposals by the Bar Council of India to finally open its legal market to foreign law firms and practitioners.
The Gazette of India published an update by the Bar Council of India on March 13 which stipulated that such lawyers and firms will also be eligible to open offices in India.
Whether the government should open the Indian legal sector to foreign law firms has been a contentious issue for several years.
Under the new rules, foreign lawyers can practise IP as well as work on transactional and corporate cases and contractual issues. They are, however, prohibited from participating in litigation.
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