Special edition No. 3, OJ EPO 2007, J.1

The President of the European Patent Office, having regard to Rule 147(2) EPC, has decided as follows:

Article 1

PHOENIX electronic file system

Files relating to European patent applications, and to international applications for which the European Patent Office (EPO) acts under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), shall be created, maintained and processed using the EPO's electronic file system, PHOENIX.

Article 2

Preservation of electronic files and of original documents

(1) The electronic files created pursuant to Article 1 shall be stored on two different electronic media for the entire period under Rule 147(4) and (5) EPC or Rule 93.1 and 93.3 PCT, as applicable.

(2) The original documents, whether making up the application or subsequently filed, shall be preserved until further notice.

Article 3

Previous decision superseded

On the entry into force of this decision, the decision dated 14 May 1998 concerning phased implementation and use of the PHOENIX electronic file system for the creation, maintenance, preservation and inspection of files (OJ EPO 1998, 360) shall cease to apply.

Article 4

Entry into force

This decision shall enter into force upon the entry into force of the revised text of the Convention in accordance with Article 8 of the Revision Act.

Done at Munich, 12 July 2007

Alison BRIMELOW

President