EPO – Benoît Battistelli (France) elected EPO President

Posted: March 2nd, 2010

In June 2009, the Administrative Council of the European Patent Organisation initiated proceedings for the election of Ms Brimelow’s successor as President of the European Patent Office. Four candidates fulfilled the formal requirements for an application but in the following regular meetings of the Council none of the candidates was able to collect the necessary votes for the required majority of three-quarters. Also an extraordinary meeting of the Council was in vain although Mr Battistelli was said to have been close to the required number of votes.

In the second extraordinary meeting March 1, 2010, the Council eventually elected Mr Battistelli for a five year term starting on July 1, 2010. Currently Mr Battistelli is President of The French National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI), head of the French delegation of the Administrative Council of the EPO and Chairman of this Council.

In the Munich press, the election met with some criticism as to the length of the election procedure and some reservations concerning the person of the new president.

Read the Communique of the EPO (in English) here.

Read the article „Schwieriges Amt, schwere Wahl“ by V. Bernau in the Süddeutsche Zeitung (in German) here.