Bonum Certa Men Certa

Breaking EPO News Regarding G 1/21: Judge Calle Josefsson Deposed as Chairman

Deposed as Chairman May 2021; Not how EPO was made
Two kangaroos gone astray



Summary: The Boards of Appeal are trying to get their act together; Josefsson has been removed from case/referral G 1/21 and Ingo Beckedorf is rumoured to have also been replaced

"Breaking news from the EPO," EPO insiders told us, citing this concrete document [PDF] dated 3 days ago (warning: epo.org link).



"An intermediate decision (so-called "interlocutory decision") has just been published in case G 1/21," we learned. "According to this decision, Josefsson has been deposed as Chairman of the panel due to well-founded suspicions of partiality. One other internal member has also been replaced. It is rumoured that this is Ingo Beckedorf who is said to have been involved in drafting the disputed regulation allowing hearing to be held by video-conference without the consent of the parties."

It's not impossible that our ongoing series played a role in this. "It seems that the other members of the Enlarged Board had enough of the way Josefsson was conducting the procedure and have staged a minor 'palace revolt'," insiders alleged. "The decision is a major slap in the face for Josefsson who should have recused himself of his own volition rather than waiting to be forced to step down by the Enlarged Board. Further updates to follow as more information becomes available."

This latest development in case no. G 1/21 means that the current series has now been "superseded by reality" as the saying goes...

"However," as insiders noted, "despite the change in the factual circumstances (i.e. the replacement of two members of the panel) most of the material and observations are still relevant. The interlocutory decision of 17 May just means that Josefsson has been deposed (along with one other member, rumoured to be Beckedorf). The hearing seems likely to continue as scheduled on 28 May with the panel in a new composition, including a new chairman."

As a side note, we have correction to make. Referring to "Calle’s Strange Metamorphosis" (Part 7), we have been notified that we wrongly assumed Jürgen Habermas had died. We apologise for this. The summary read as follows: "Sources believe the “legal anarchy” that EPOnia became notorious for, especially when it comes to handling referrals at the EPO‘s BoA, will become a dark legacy — a legacy that would, if he was alive, disappoint even Josefsson’s source of inspiration."

Josefsson’s source of inspiration is still alive to witness the appalling metamorphosis of young "Calle", who has just suffered a form of humiliation among his peers. "The wording suggests that Jürgen Habermas is no longer in the land of the living," said a reader. But that was wrong, a regretful assumption had been made. "As a matter of fact," the reader said, "Habermas is still alive and resides in Starnberg, near Munich. Although he is at a very advanced age - approaching 92 in June - he made the headlines in Germany earlier this month when he turned down an award from the United Arab Emirates worth over € 200,000."

Talking of principles...

Our reader said: "Habermas had been in line for a Sheikh Zayed Book Award under the category "Cultural Personality of the Year." Winners of the cultural personality award receive not only a medal but also a lucrative cash prize of 1 million UAE dirhams (approx. € 226,498). The awards are named after Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the first president of the UAE who ruled Abu Dhabi for over 30 years. Habermas had initially decided to accept the award, but then changed his mind saying it was the wrong decision."

Shades of Jesper Kongstad and his political allies in Denmark with their Rolex scandals (taking a very expensive watch from the Saudi king).

In a statement shared with the German Spiegel Online news website, Habermas said "I declared my willingness to accept this year's Sheikh Zayed Book Award. That was a wrong decision, which I correct hereby".

"I didn't sufficiently make clear to myself the very close connection of the institution, which awards these prizes in Abu Dhabi, with the existing political system there," he added.

To quote our reader: "The German public service broadcaster Deutsche Welle reported on the affair in the following articles [1, 2] and Deutsche Welle had previously published articles on Habermas to mark his 80th and 85th birthdays.

Josefsson? #NotMyPresident of the boards of appealWill Josefsson last until the end of his (already-extended, nearly 2 years ahead of time!) term in 2027? Will he be sacked prematurely like Kongstad? The perception of the independence of the Boards of Appeal has long been problematic, even by admission of its members! Removing Josefsson and replacing him with someone that António Campinos doesn't have in his back pocket would perhaps revive AMBA after a long hiatus. Maybe that would even put a smile on Habermas's face.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Techrights Will Spend the Next Few Years Writing a Lot About Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs)
It's a growing problem
The State of EPO Staff's Health in Rijswijk or The Hague
We're going to cover the EPO some more later in the month
NVIDIA Corp Lost 36% of Its "Value" Since Cheeto Inauguration, But "Gen Hey Hi" (GenAI) is Totally Not a Bubble
Selling loads of unneeded hardware based on hysterical hype; like selling shovels during a Gold Rush
 
Links 05/04/2025: TikTok Unsold (Still), Royal Society is Dead
Links for the day
GNU/Linux Growing in East Asia, Windows by Default No More?
GNU/Linux is now on the shelf
Slopwatch: Anti-Linux 'Articles' From Linux-Hostile LLMs
It is almost always negative things and nobody can be held responsible for it except the charlatans prompting the LLMs
Links 05/04/2025: Fentanylware (TikTok) "Sale Looks Highly Imminent" (US), Stock Market Drowning in Panic
Links for the day
Gemini Links 05/04/2025: Moving Plants, No to Smartwatches, RAID Hygiene
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, April 04, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, April 04, 2025
Techrights Has Dealt With More Potent SLAPPs Than Violent Microsofters Begging to Hide What They Did to Women
I became accustomed to SLAPPs
Links 04/04/2025: Fury in South Korea, Flight MH370 Remains Mystery
Links for the day
Gemini Links 04/04/2025: Anger and Raspberry Pi CM4
Links for the day
Links 04/04/2025: LLM Slop Bubble Bursting and Korea Music Copyright Association Bans Slop 'Music'
Links for the day
Traf-O-Data, the Company That Jeffrey Epstein's BFF (Bill Gates) (Co)Founded 53 Years and Went Out of Business Due to Heavy Losses
Who will die first, Bill or Microsoft?
Why Microsoft's Shares Sank Almost 20% in Recent Months (the Bubble is Imploding)
verified press reports from the past 24 hours
A Note on SimilarWeb
Or why SimilarWeb is meaningless for more than 99% of the sites on the Web
GNU/Linux Rises to Almost 5% in Algeria While Windows Sinks to All-Time Low
GNU/Linux grew tenfold
Where to Get More Gags
A valued reader recommended that to us
Links 04/04/2025: Tech Stock (Inc. GAFAM) Fall, Google Pretends to Do End-to-End Encrypted Emails (With Google in Control)
Links for the day
IBM Said to be Shutting Down Offices or Sites in the United States
the press can no longer avoid admitting that IBM moves many jobs to India
To Participate in Fedora Diversity You Must Use Proprietary Software
Not for the first time either
LLM Slop as Attack Vector on the Reputation of Linux
The attacks on Linux have escalated to information warfare
Yandex About to Be Three Times Bigger Than Microsoft (Bing) in Asia
That's about 60% of the world's population
Gemini Links 04/04/2025: Decoupling Updates, Elaho as Gemini Client
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, April 03, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, April 03, 2025
Microsoft's Trouble in Africa and Asia
A new all-time high for GNU/Linux
Brett Wilson LLP Reported to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)
The saddest thing in all this is that law firms can maintain high standards shall they wish to
Links 03/04/2025: Tariff Pains and C.D.C. Cuts
Links for the day
StatCounter: Microsoft is Masking a Disaster, It's Way Behind DeepSeek Already and Interest in LLMs Has Waned
it turns out the money "raised" for "Open" "AI" may not even exist at all
Links 03/04/2025: SoftBank Money for Microsoft "Open" "AI" Probably Doesn't Even Exist, Wikimedia Foundation Blasts LLM Nuisance While Microsoft Admits Demand Has Shrunk
Links for the day
Gemini Links 03/04/2025: Patch Panel and Pictures
Links for the day
Islamic Republic of Iran: GNU/Linux at All-time High This Month, Windows Falls to 12%
Vista 10 is up this month despite being "end of life" (EoL) soon
Indonesia: All-Time Highs for GNU/Linux
What's noteworthy right now is the growth of GNU/Linux
statCounter Says GNU/Linux Usage is Up Again (Internationally)
some preliminary April data
Only on April 1st Can the Free Software Foundation Associate With Microsoft's Open Source Initiative (OSI)
We saw some pranks that day linking the FSF to Microsoft (e.g. "endorsing" Windows)
Confirmed in the Mainstream Media: A Lot of Microsoft "Workloads" Were Just LLM Slop (Helping to Fake Growth for Years, as Microsoft Had Paid "Open" "AI" to Become a "Client") and Demand is Rapidly Waning, Datacentres Canceled and/or Shut Down
Anything to facilitate further accounting fraud
Taiwan's Media Covers Closure of Microsoft's "AI" Lab, It's Time to Talk About the Gradual Death of Windows and Implosion of the "AI" Bubble
Earlier this week we showed that mostly Asian media had the 'nerve' to mention Microsoft silently shutting down its 'AI' lab
IBM Gets Rid of Kelly Chambliss as Mass Layoffs Reported in IBM Consulting, IBM Loses Key Contracts/Graft
IBM Consulting has been in disarray lately
More Gains for GNU/Linux, Based on Web Surveys
the Steam site shows rapid growth for "Linux" this month
Slopwatch: Anti-Linux Articles, Not Even Written by Humans
Why aren't Web sites more vocal about this problem?
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, April 02, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, April 02, 2025
Links 03/04/2025: Apple Fined Over Secret Surveillance, "Elegant Writer For A More Civilized Age"
Links for the day