The Finnish delegation: Rauni Hagman and her deputy Antti Riivari.
In this part we turn our attention to the Finnish delegation, one of the three Nordic delegations which voted in favour of Benoît Battistelli's "Strike Regulations" in June 2013.
"The new head of the Finnish delegation, Rauni Hagman, was assisted by her deputy, Antti Riivari, a senior civil servant at the Ministry for Employment and the Economy."At the time in question the Finnish delegation was headed by Rauni Hagman who had been appointed as Director General of the Finnish Patent and Registration Office (PRH) in 2010.
Hagman had taken over at the helm of the PRH following the departure of Martti Enäjärvi who retired in June 2010 after he had come under suspicion of repeated and persistent misuse of his official credit card following an official audit of the PRH.
Enäjärvi's influence on EPO and OHIM/EUIPO affairs over the last decade or so - including his close connections with both Battistelli and António Campinos - has been dealt with in detail in an earlier series about Battistelli's 2010 "Baltic Crusade".
"Riivari later succeeded Hagman as head of the PRH when she retired in 2016."By June 2013 Enäjärvi was no longer active on the EPO's Administrative Council. Having been put out to grass in Finland, he was enjoying his retirement as a "Special Advisor" to the Chief Executive of the EU trademark agency OHIM/EUIPO, António Campinos.
The new head of the Finnish delegation, Rauni Hagman, was assisted by her deputy, Antti Riivari, a senior civil servant at the Ministry for Employment and the Economy. Riivari later succeeded Hagman as head of the PRH when she retired in 2016.
It's not known what exactly induced the Finnish delegation to vote in favour of Battistelli's "Strike Regulations" in June 2013 but there are rumours that he had obtained their favour by promising a senior management post at the EPO for someone from Finland.
There is only one Finnish person of prominence inside the EPO - Heli Pihlajamaa – who has been languishing at Director level for the past 25 years. So, it's conceivable that Battistelli held out the prospect of promoting her to a Principal Director position in the EPO's Directorate of Legal and International Affairs. But if that's the case, then it turned out to be an empty promise - as with much else in "le système Battistelli"!
"It's not known what exactly induced the Finnish delegation to vote in favour of Battistelli's "Strike Regulations" in June 2013 but there are rumours that he had obtained their favour by promising a senior management post at the EPO for someone from Finland."Nevertheless, some time later in March 2018, Antti Riivari - by now head of the Finnish delegation - was elected to the Board of the Administrative Council, the exclusive "inner circle" which prepares the agenda for the Council's quarterly meetings. Perhaps this little sinecure for Riivari was intended as a reward for his earlier complicity in Battistelli's "reign of terror"?
Finland is a somewhat peripheral country which, at first glance, doesn't seem to be of much significance in the grand scheme of European "IP".
However, mainly due to its influence over the neighbouring Baltic states, Finland has managed to carve out a strategic role in the world of EPO realpolitik which enables it to punch above its weight.
"Finland's influence over its Baltic neighbours in "IP" matters persists following Enäjärvi's departure."These matters have been elaborated in detail in the earlier series referred to above. In particular, it was explained how Battistelli's Finnish "facilitator" Martti Enäjärvi assisted him in implementing his strategic plan to "co-opt" the EPO's Baltic states - Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia - in support of his bid to become EPO President in 2010.
Finland's influence over its Baltic neighbours in "IP" matters persists following Enäjärvi's departure. The Finnish delegation continues to play a prominent role in the annual meetings of the heads of the Nordic and Baltic "IP" offices.
Photo-op from the Nordic-Baltic "IP" office love-in held in Reykjavík, May 2018.
Back row (l. to r.): Margus Viher (EE), Per Foss (NO), Sune Stampe Sørensen (DK), Peter Strömbäck (SE).
Front row (l. to r.): Arūnas Želvys (LT), Sandris Laganovskis (LV), Antti Riivari (FI), Borghildur Erlingsdóttir (IS).
epo.org link), Campinos made sure that he did not neglect to pay a visit to Helsinki to meet with the current boss of the PRH, Antii Riivari.
Team Campinos pays a visit to Finland in 2019