A guide to the UPC and the UP - Flipbook - Page 488
A23-15 R.10(2) EPLC Rules says that, when the course is being provided by the Court’s Training Centre
in Budapest, it must comply with the substantive requirements set out in rr.3 to 5 EPLC Rules.
It shall also assist accredited universities to offer courses at the seat of the Training Centre,
if requested. However, the Training Centre currently does not have extensive facilities; the last
course for judges was held at the Hungarian IP Office.
A23-16 Under r.9 EPLC Rules, any educational body delivering a course (including the Training Centre)
will be required to report on the curriculum, results and statistics of the accredited course.
What is meant by “statistics” is not made clear in the EPLC Rules. However, the explanatory
memorandum gives some guidance saying that the number and nationality of students and the
number of issued certificates should be reported on.
Other “Appropriate Qualifications” – the Grandfathering Scheme
A23-17 Part II of the EPLC Rules provides the details of the other “appropriate” qualifications which will
suffice under art.48(2) UPCA.
A23-18 R.11 EPLC Rules provides that an EPA who has a degree in law or equivalent from a Member
State shall be deemed to have appropriate qualifications. The explanatory memorandum points
out that such diplomas are generally not sufficient to act as a lawyer, but they do provide
sufficient basic knowledge of private and procedural law. R.12 EPLC Rules provides that in
addition, for a period of one year after entry into force of the UPCA, a number of national
qualifications will also be recognised as conferring on EPAs appropriate qualifications. This one
year period was reduced from the three-year period originally proposed in the draft EPLC Rules
published on 13 June 2014. The reason for this reduction may be related to the fact that the
course to be taken to obtain an EPLC only requires 120 hours of lectures and so can be more
easily completed than was originally envisaged. This means that EPAs who wish to invoke such
grandfathering rights will have a one year window to apply for registration under art.48(3) UPCA
and r.13 EPLC Rules.
A23-19 According to the explanatory memorandum, the list of relevant courses has been established
taking into account several criteria including: the nature and location of the educational body
delivering the courses, the duration of education, the curriculum, the teaching staff and
examination procedure (taking into account national considerations). The list of relevant
courses are listed in r.12(a) EPLC Rules as follows:
– Centre d’Études Internationales de la Propriété Intellectuelle, courses leading to the Diploma
on Patent litigation in Europe or to the Diploma of international studies in industrial property
(specialized in patents);
– FernUniversität in Hagen, course “Law for Patent Attorneys” and its predecessor, the course
“Kandidatenkurs Fischbachau”;
– Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, course “Zusatzstudium Gewerblicher Rechtsschutz”;
– Nottingham Law School, course “Intellectual Property Litigation and Advocacy”;
– Queen Mary University of London, courses “Certificate in Intellectual Property Law” or “MSc
Management of Intellectual Property”;
– Intellectual Property Regulation Board, “Intellectual Property Litigation Certificate”;
– Intellectual Property Regulation Board, “Higher Courts Litigation Certificate”;
– Intellectual Property Regulation Board, “Higher Courts Advocacy Certificate”;
– Stichting Beroepsopleiding Octrooigemachtigden, course “Beroepsopleiding
Octrooigemachtigden”;
© Bird & Bird LLP | May 2023
A Guide to the UPC and the UP 478
