According to Carl Josefsson, the Objective of the EPO Boards of Appeal (BoA) is All About Speed, Not Justice (or Even Compliance With Laws, Constitutions, European Patent Convention)
Just like the misguided and likely illegal goals dictated to patent examiners. EPO managers (crooks and friends or family members of crooks) act like they're running a candy store. They think of judgements, searches, and monopoly grants as "products" and people who apply for monopolies as "clients" or "customers". Censorship is draconically imposed on those who resist it, even those citing underlying laws that are being deliberately violated.
TODAY we're back to covering EPO material and we have some catching up to do, having lacked the time to cover this yesterday as we had planned.
Today we'd like to share a weeks-old publication from the Local Staff Committee Munich (LSCMN), i.e. elected representatives of the thousands of EPO staff members working in Munich, Germany. The people who turned the EPO into a festival of crimes pretended Haar was in Munich [1, 2] and media that they bribed selfishly pretended this was OK. They engaged in collective punishment (over a judge who spoke about corruption and offered hard proof) and had a sick sense of humour. All those involved in this scandal were never punished or even reprimanded for what they had done. The concept of "justice" at the EPO is, those who are senior are right, no matter what the law says. Not even what constitutions say! The EPO has its own "Code of Conduct" and, just like in the Linux Foundation, those at the higher tier are above the code, they just use it to remove people they dislike. It's not about inclusion or diversity, it is about vengeance and abuse of power. It is autocracy codified.
Back anyway, we digress. Back to LSCMN....
They met with Carl Josefsson, the chief kangaroo of Benoît Battistelli and António Campinos, i.e. the man who approves their dubious/illegal policy under the guise of "appeals" and independent judgement (since Campinos - and prior to him Battistelli - can veto his appointment of course he knows the unspeakable rule is that he must perpetually please them, not judge them). With the UPC, another layer of kangaroo courts, the corruption deepens even further, as we deviate not just further away from the EPC but also the Rule and Law and national constitutions. The EPO's corruption and endemic crime have in effect spread to the EU and almost nobody wants to talk about it (almost).
Here's a publication dated 4 days before Christmas, authored by the staff's representatives over a month after the meeting or simply published very late.
Örtlicher Personalausschuss München Innenstadt, Haar und Brüssel
Local Staff Committee Munich City, Haar and Brussels
Le Comité local du Personnel de Munich Ville, Haar et Bruxelles
Munich, 21-12-2023
sc23022mpReport on the meeting with the EPO Boards of Appeal (BoA) of 9 November 2023
On 29 November 2023 members of the Local Staff Committee Munich met online with the Boards of Appeal, as represented by the President of the EPO Boards of Appeal Carl Josefsson, Head of Department Legal Research Marielle Piana, Advisor to the President of the BoA Marco Domenichini, Director in Administrative Services Wiek Crasborn, and Administrator in Administration and Business Processes Katja Warneck.
Meeting opened: 15:00
Opening of the meeting
Mr. Josefsson opened the meeting by welcoming Staff Representation and introducing the other EPO Boards of Appeal meeting participants.
Objectives of the Boards of Appeal
Mr. Josefsson explained that the Boards were on track to fulfil their 5-year objectives. The goal was to make an important change to the way the Boards worked. The backlog of pending cases was decreasing, and they were on track to have a backlog of 5000 pending cases by the end of the year. The number of incoming cases was also decreasing. The next objective was to settle 90% of cases within 30 months. This objective should be reached by early 2024. The objective for the end of 2025 was to have no more than 10% of cases being older than 24 months. In 2025 a decision would be made about longer-term timeliness objectives.
Changes to the Rules of Procedure of the Boards of Appeal
Mr. Josefsson explained that proposed amendments to the Rules of Procedure of the Boards of Appeal (RPBA) aimed at providing the required modifications to the procedural framework so that cases could be settled more quickly and within predictable timeframes. The proposed amendments had been adopted by the Boards of Appeal Committee (BoAC), and were awaiting approval by the Administrative Council in December 2023. They concerned a shortening of the standard period for filing the reply to the statement of grounds of appeal as well as a strengthening of the position of parties in the application of the convergent approach.
New Ways of Working (NWoW) and Bringing Teams Together (BTT)
The Boards of Appeal had been applying the New Ways of Working framework since Spring 2023 and it appeared to be working well, with the majority (60%) of hearings being held by video conference. In an average week 25% of staff were present in Haar, and the Boards would usually meet together in person one day a week. Everyone had their own office, although that lead to some corridors being empty at times.
Staff Representation asked Mr. Josefsson if the BoA would be taking part in the New Ways of Working survey. Mr. Josefsson said that they would, but the survey would be adapted to the BoA and the results would go to the President of the BoA rather than the President of the Office. Mr. Josefsson added that it was still to be seen how NWoW and BTT would be carried out in BT7. The working environment needed to be attractive to encourage staff to come in. Mr. Josefsson thought that lessons could be learned from how the NWoW and BTT projects were functioning in the rest of the EPO.
Relocation
The Boards were still on target to move to Bauteil VII in 2025, although there was no fixed date as negotiations concerning ending the Haar contract were still taking place. Mr. Josefsson could not provide any information as yet about what would happen with the canteen, café and Sky Bar in Bauteil VII. The Boards still intended to use the hearing rooms in Bauteil VI.
Staff Representation asked who else would be in Bauteil VII once the BoA moved in. Mr. Josefsson stated that the building would not be filled by the BoA. He had no information who would be occupying the other floors as that was an EPO decision, but to ensure independence it would not be staff involved in the patent grant process.
Printers
The BoA had also implemented secure (P5000) printing, Mr. Josefsson had no particular comments to make on the subject. Mr. Crasborn added that the Chairpersons had been consulted.
Digitalisation
Staff Representation asked about digitalisation at the BoA. For example, would the BoA be using MyEPO Portfolio to allow digital submissions? Mr. Crasborn replied that this was in discussion with BIT, but would depend on the results of a cost benefit analysis.
Safety of the Haar building
Staff Representation explained that they had been alerted to an issue regarding the safety of some external stairs. Mr. Josefsson replied that he was aware of the issue, and this was being looked at.
Closing of the meeting
Staff Representation thanked Mr. Josefsson for the meeting, commenting on the pleasant atmosphere. Mr. Josefsson replied that the channel for communication remained open in case any issues arose before the next regular meeting.
Meeting closed: 15:44
The Local Staff Committee Munich (LSCMN)
This entire meeting lasted merely 44 minutes. After so much time without such meetings and with so many topics (and people in attendance) to discuss. How many words per person? In the entire meeting?
This is very typical at the EPO.
It's quite revealing that Josefsson isn't truly in power. He's "his master's voice".
In order to cash in a lot of money, with no end in sight, of course he's not rocking the boat, let alone just mention that - as per AMBA - there's no independence anymore in his kangaroo court/s (all of them, including the enlarged board, from which he was 'ousted' only after an incredible blunder). It is a political instrument for the mirage of "justice", just like in Turkey.
Welcome to Europe or the EU under EPO influence/interference. The corruption spreads horizontally (e.g. to CEIPI and EUIPO), sometimes even vertically. What's going to stop this chronic lawlessness?
The "Relocation" to Haar (discussed above) was patently illegal, potentially invaliding many years' rulings, and all those "webchat" 'court' hearings are also in violation of various constitutions, but don't let that get in the way of the kangaroo in chief. Like Mr. Ernst, he's paid to be a complicit participant in an increasingly corrupt system designed to enrich foreign companies that already have load of money (capital) and dominant market share (grip). This is neither about scientific advancement nor justice. It's a parade of the absurd.
Shame on the media for being so silent about it.
Some media outlets believe their role is becoming "partners" of the EPO, running endless propaganda and ghostwritten puff pieces in exchange for money (de facto bribes). In other words, some magazines and sites become very much complicit in perpetuating violations of the law. Juve is one of those. As many politicians (I spoke to some) believe everything lobbyists and EPO-funded media tell them, there's almost nobody to truly talk to. The system, at least in Germany and The Netherlands, is bought and paid for. There's still a massive corruption scandal surrounding the EPO in The Netherlands. SUEPO has been fully aware of it for years, according to sources we spoke to in length, but it's not talking about that. Maybe it's time to find the guts and bring out leaks related to that.
Some people inside the EPO are losing hope; seeing this and several other recent development, one insider told us it "also means that a vast majority of the employees don't care. Sad reality."
The person "decided to completely forget about the EPO," to quote directly, "dedicating myself to other fulfilling activities."
If not enough is done to rectify things, Europe as a whole will suffer, not just the Office where many examiners continue to receive 6-figure annual salaries. █