R.26 EPC General and definitions

(1)

For European patent applications and patents concerning biotechnological inventions, the relevant provisions of the Convention shall be applied and interpreted in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter. Directive 98/44/EC of 6 July 1998 [ 36 ] on the legal protection of biotechnological inventions shall be used as a supplementary means of interpretation.

(2)

"Biotechnological inventions" are inventions which concern a product consisting of or containing biological material or a process by means of which biological material is produced, processed or used.

(3)

"Biological material" means any material containing genetic information and capable of reproducing itself or being reproduced in a biological system.

(4)

"Plant variety" means any plant grouping within a single botanical taxon of the lowest known rank, which grouping, irrespective of whether the conditions for the grant of a plant variety right are fully met, can be:

(a)

defined by the expression of the characteristics that results from a given genotype or combination of genotypes,

(b)

distinguished from any other plant grouping by the expression of at least one of the said characteristics, and

(c)

considered as a unit with regard to its suitability for being propagated unchanged.

(5)

A process for the production of plants or animals is essentially biological if it consists entirely of natural phenomena such as crossing or selection.

(6)

"Microbiological process" means any process involving or performed upon or resulting in microbiological material.

[ Art. 52 53 R. 31 32 33 34 ]

See decisions of the Enlarged Board of Appeal G 1/98, G 2/06, G 2/07, G 1/08 (Annex I).

See OJ EPO 1999, 101.

Source: http://www.epo.org/law-practice/legal-texts/html/epc/2016/e/r26.html

Date retrieved: 17 May 2021

43 references found.

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EPC Articles

X A.52 EPC Patentable inventions

X A.53 EPC Exceptions to patentability

EPC Implementing Rules

X Chapter V Biotechnological inventions

X R.31 EPC Deposit of biological material

X R.32 EPC Expert solution

X R.33 EPC Availability of biological material

X R.34 EPC New deposit of biological material

EPO Guidelines - A Formalities Examination

X GL A IV 4.1 Biological material; deposit thereof

EPO Guidelines - F The European Patent Application

X GL F III 6.1 Biological material

EPO Guidelines - G Patentability

X GL G II 5.1 General remarks and definitions

X GL G II 5.2 Patentable biotechnological inventions

X GL G II 5.4.1 Plant varieties

X GL G II 5.4.2 Essentially biological processes for the production of plants or animals

X GL G II 5.5.1 General remarks

Offical Journal of the EPO

X OJ EPO 2020, A119 - Opinion of the Enlarged Board of Appeal dated 14 May 2020 - G 3/19

X OJ EPO 2013, 42 - Decision of Technical Board of Appeal 3.3.04 dated 31 May 2012 T 1242/06 3.3.04

X OJ EPO 2012, 206 - Decision of the Enlarged Board of Appeal dated 9 December 2010 G 1/08 1

X OJ EPO 2012, 130 - Decision of the Enlarged Board of Appeal dated 9 December 2010 G 2/07

X OJ EPO 2010, 498 - Notice from the European Patent Office dated 7 July 2010 concerning inventions which involve the use of or concern biological material

X OJ EPO 2009, 306 - Decision of the Enlarged Board of Appeal dated 25 November 2008 G 2/06

X OJ EPO 2008, 523 - Decisions of the boards of appeal

Case Law Book: I Patentability

X CLR I B 2.1.1 Scope of exception under Rule 28(c) EPC

X CLR I B 2.2.2.C Donor consent

X CLR I B 3.1.1 Definition of the term "plant varieties"

X CLR I B 3.3.1 Essentially biological processes for the production of animals

X CLR I B 3.4.1 The concept of "microbiological processes"

Case Law Book: III Amendments

X CLR III H 1.2.4 Subsequent agreement or practice

X CLR III H 6 Implementing Regulations

Case Law of the Enlarged Board

X G 0001/98 (Transgenic plant/NOVARTIS II) of 20.12.1999

X G 0002/06 (Use of embryos/WARF) of 25.11.2008

X G 0002/07 (Broccoli/PLANT BIOSCIENCE) of 9.12.2010

X G 0001/08 (Tomatoes/STATE OF ISRAEL) of 9.12.2010

X G 0002/12 () of 25.3.2015

X G 0002/13 () of 25.3.2015

X G 0003/19 (Pepper (follow-up to ÂTomatoes IIÂ and ÂBroccoli IIÂ)) of 14.5.2020

General Case Law

X T 1242/06 (Tomatoes II/STATE OF ISRAEL) of 31.5.2012

X T 1729/06 (Seedless watermelon/SYNGENTA) of 17.9.2014

X T 0788/07 (Brassica/PIONEER) of 7.1.2008

X T 1854/07 (Oil from seeds/CONSEJO SUPERIOR) of 12.5.2010

X T 0547/10 (Transgenic cotton plants/BAYER CROPSCIENCE) of 13.7.2016

X T 0915/10 (Soybean event/MONSANTO) of 11.6.2015

X T 1208/12 (Oilseed/PIONEER HI-BRED) of 7.2.2017

X T 1441/13 (Embryonic stem cells, disclaimer /ASTERIAS) of 9.9.2014