Bonum Certa Men Certa

Updates Regarding EPO and BoAC: Unrest and Injustice Carry on

Hanging in the balance of Battistelli's gross injustice

Hanging mugs



Summary: Some of the latest information which is publicly and privately available to us, in particular regarding the case of a suspended judge which represents unprecedented erosion of the appeal boards' independence (and hence lack of justice in the Organisation)

THE EPO is in a very sad state. The culprits -- those who have ruined it -- still keep their jobs and even have their contracts extended/renewed. Insiders can now get the Administrative Council's minutes from June. They came out several days ago. What took so long? Are those minutes so secretive and is the EPO afraid that outsiders will exploit them? We are going to publish these quite soon. June's meeting was all about BoAC, whereas back in March Battistelli came under fire (or the pretense of it). Things don't appear to have moved onwards; the latest (October) meeting gave room for hope, but December is unlikely to bring the well-overdue sacking of Battistelli. The crowdfunding of a Battistelli departure (or firing) party just continues and the money piles up. Fireworks?



"One day we hope to release more material from the March and June meetings of the Administrative Council."For those who forgot, the June meeting was all about BoAC, brushing aside the social issues as if they didn't matter, after the March meeting promised they would be dealt with urgently and even sort of set an ultimatum for Battistelli -- one which he obviously ignored.

A person who has seen the Administrative Council's minutes from June told us that "[i]t makes an interesting comparison with how the meeting was perceived at the time. Turns out that the BoA reform only just got through. Some great quotes from Battistelli as well about SUEPO."

One day we hope to release more material from the March and June meetings of the Administrative Council. We already have such material, but we never got around to publishing it due to lack of time (no urgency at the time).

We have meanwhile noticed an additional comment with some links in it, relating to claims that the EPO lied about what had happened in the midst of the above meeting. The comment in IP Watch says:

The entire text of the AC’s March resolution can be found at http://www.hipo.gov.hu/en/news/sztnh-hirek/hirek-esemenyek/147th-meeting-of-the-administrative-council-of-the-european-patent

The background of the issue is explained here: http://kluwerpatentblog.com/2016/03/18/supervisory-board-european-patent-office-votes-for-reforms-increasing-the-pressure-on-president-benoit-battistelli/


Looking over at IP Kat for updates (the site itself is self-censoring, but comments continue to come out), we have:

Why is this post still in the top 5? What happened afterwards? Is the guy dismissed or not?


There is no coverage anymore. The people from IP Kat seem to not care about the EPO scandals, especially after the EPO banned the site for a day. They are self-censoring, specifically regarding EPO scandals (they still mention the EPO, but only in a positive context and UPC promotion). Not by accident, certainly!

Here is one response to the above:

No. Battistelli is still there. The AC didn't take any disciplinary action against him. Casado and Topic were also renewed.


Another person wrote:

Not dismissed. Under the new regulations adopted in June, he remains suspended. Without any running procedure. In a clear violation of judiciary independence....

So, it looks like he'll remain suspended until his end of term, and with current management no chance of reappointment. This is a hidden disciplinary measure... If new allegations pop up, these are likely to be the result of the previous investigation, which under national procedures would not be permitted to be used during a different procedure...


"Is there something rotten in the state of Denmark," another comment added, linking to "Danish Press Coverage of the EPO by Berlingske" (Techrights).

A few more (newer) comments say:

Quite frankly, this is unacceptable. The EPO's whole purpose is to uphold the law (on patents). How can they be trusted to do that properly when they do not even follow their own internal rules and procedures, let alone common principles on the rule of law (or human rights)?

The EPO (and the AC) would do well to remember the importance of ensuring that not only is justice done but that it is seen to be done. The damage to the EPO's reputation (and to that of all professionals working in the patent sphere) could be immense if this is not handled properly. Indeed, that ship may well have already sailed.




Quite frankly, this is unacceptable. The EPO's whole purpose [etc. etc.]

[Yawn] ...

Trop c’est trop. Battistelli doit partir (Philip Cordery, 11.10.2016)

[double Yawn] ...

"Enlarged Board publishes decision: EPO President violated judicial independence"

[more Yawns] ...

Et sinon, ces croquettes, ca vient?


A bit of sarcasm:

The EPO's whole purpose is to uphold the law (on patents).

Sorry, that was yesterday, before the "much needed" reforms to "modernize" the European Patent Office.

Now the whole purpose seems to be lining the pockets of the Representatives of the AC so that they can fake [mild] outrage at what is going on - or no outrage at all at the President violating judicial independence.




The ship sailed a long time ago.....3 years ago

And the silence here is not just embarrassing its highly suspicious


The above comment says that "Casado and Topic were also renewed" -- a subject we'll explore again later this week. These renewals were publicly mentioned in the EPO's latest update regarding the meeting of the Administrative Council of the European Patent Organisation. The overview was published online several days later (the following week in fact) and it says:

The Administrative Council of the European Patent Organisation held its 149th meeting in Munich on 12 and 13 October 2016 under the chairmanship of Jesper Kongstad, Director General of the Danish Patent and Trademark Office.

After the Chairman's report on the most recent meetings of the Board of the Administrative Council, the Council noted the activities report given by the President of the European Patent Office, Benoît Battistelli (to be published shortly on this website). The Council was pleased with the excellent results achieved by the Office in terms of efficiency and productivity but again stressed the need to be conscious of any possible impact on quality. The Council urged staff and management to use the momentum of the Social Conference, held just ahead of the Council meeting, in order to further the social dialogue and work together to find solutions.

The Council then proceeded with a series of appointments and reappointments of members of the Enlarged Board of Appeal and a Chairman and of legally and technically qualified members of the Board of Appeals.

Later, under the heading Legal and International Affairs, the Council heard a status report on the Unitary patent and related developments, given by the Slovak delegation, representing the country holding the EU presidency for the second half of 2016.

The Council made the following appointments to the Boards of Appeal Committee each for a three-year term, starting on 13 October 2016

a) from among the delegations:

Mr Roland Grossenbacher(CH) and his alternate Mr Derk-Jan De Groot (NL),

Ms Patricia García-Escudero (ES) and her alternate Mr Jorma Hanski (FI),

Ms Bucura Ionescu (RO) and her alternate Ms Catherine Margellou (GR)

b) from among former or serving judges:

Mr Klaus Bacher (DE), Mr Justice Birss (GB) and Mr Are Stenvik (NO). Alternate members in this category would be appointed at the next Council meeting. The Council noted that the Board of Appeals Committee and the President would make a joint proposal for appointment of the President of the Boards of Appeal in time for the next Council meeting.

By way of further appointments to the Council's own bodies, in each case for a three-year term, starting on 15 December 2016, the Council:

-elected Mr Josef Kratochvíl (CZ) deputy chairman of the Council,

re-elected Mr Lex Kaufhold (LU) deputy chairman of the Budget and Finance Committee; and

-elected Mr Vojko Toman (SI) member of the Board of the Administrative Council.

It also elected Ms Delfina Autiero (IT) member representing the Administrative Council within the Supervisory Board of the Reserve Funds for Pensions and Social Security (RFPSS) with effect from 12 October 2016.

On a proposal from the President, the Council decided to extend until 31 December 2018 the appointments of Mr Alberto Casado (ES) and Mr ZeljkoTopic (HR), Vice-Presidents in charge of Directorate-General 2 and 4 respectively.

Finally, the Council noted, as a first step in a longer process, comprehensive social and financial studies and had an exchange of views on reviewing the disciplinary procedures framework.


The above is a somewhat 'sanitised' version of what was posted internally (and we leaked earlier this month).

Regarding that last line, stay tuned as later this week we have much to reveal about Željko Topić. It's not a done deal; Battistelli was rumoured to be behind this renewal.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Links 25/07/2025: NOAA Cuts Endanger Lives, "Europe's Self Inflicted Cloud Crisis"
Links for the day
YouTube is a Spamfarm, Slopfarm, and Clickfarm (a Lot of Numbers There Are Fake)
Those who don't fake look unpopular and unimportant
 
Links 25/07/2025: Slop Blunders and China Has Code of Conduct for Lawmakers in HK
Links for the day
Gemini Links 25/07/2025: Some Books and Babies and Capital
Links for the day
They Try to Lecture Us on Ethics
They even removed "master" from Microsoft GitHub
The Future of the Web is One Rendering Engine or 'Flavours' of Chrome
The future of the Web does not look bright at all
Best Sites Are Not Optimised for Any Browser, They Work Equally Well With All of Them
Red Hat (IBM) is making rubbish sites
We Don't Do JavaScript and Pages Are Small
Thankfully Gemini Protocol has nothing like JavaScript
'Tech' is Not Technology
Some people use terms like 'Old Tech'
IBM's Debt Rose by Almost 10 Billion Dollars in the Past 6 Months Alone
The "hey hi" circus is coming to an end
Yes, Master
Gaslighting by actual racists
Microsoft Bribes and Buys Politicians to Tell Europe What to Do About Free Software (Which It's Attacking)
Microsoft: we speak for the thing that we are attacking! Follow the money...
Making Backups Quickly and Reliably
Backups are imperative, more so in an age of uncertainty, unpredictable weather, and worsening standards (quality of products going down while prices go up)
Techrights Investigation: Estimating the Point in Time LinuxIac Turned Into LLM Slop (Part of the Time)
Bobby Borisov got lazy
10th Month, Ten Weeks From Now, at Ten AM
In Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, July 24, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, July 24, 2025
A Nadella Memo Distracts From Microsoft's Cheapening Of the Workforce
Right now the "MSM" (mainstream media) is flooded/overwhelmed by garbage pieces that relay lies for Nadella
Vanishing Faces of GNU/Linux
Free software projects do not depend on any one person or company to still exist
Microsoft Says It Lost 400 Million Windows Users, Now It's Waiting for GNU/Linux to Stop Booting on 'Old' PCs
When it comes to Windows, Microsoft is fully aware of the issue and statements it made earlier this summer suggest it lost 400 million Windows users
Slopwatch: LinuxTechLab, linuxsecurity.com, LinuxIac, and More
Also: The Register's Microsoft agenda (new editor)
Gemini Links 25/07/2025: Gemtext Aware Titan Editor and Gemini Protocol Comeback
Links for the day
Links 24/07/2025: Convicted Felon Quits UNESCO, "Vibe Coding Goes Wrong", and Signalgate Gets Worse
Links for the day
Gemini Links 24/07/2025: Forgejo Woes and Smolnet Directory Week
Links for the day
Misinformation is Not Intelligence
It's low-grade plagiarism and it fails to show any signs of intelligence
Links 24/07/2025: Storage Tapes Still Kicking, Windows TCO 'on Steroids' (Microsoft-Induced Catastrophes)
Links for the day
Bobby Borisov (LinuxIac) Has Apparently Begun Experimenting With LLM Slop, So We Cannot Trust LinuxIac Anymore
So did LinuxIac become a slopfarm? Maybe not yet, but it's getting there
Informa TechTarget's ITProToday is Becoming a Slopfarm Generated by Microsoft Chatbots
Busted.
'Tech' Gimmicks Are for Advertising, Not for Usability
In the case of Microsoft, they latched onto slop
BetaNews Sacked Brian Fagioli and Deleted His Comments, But He Still Tries to Use the "BetaNews" Brand for Self-Affirmation
Fagioli takes the work of other people
[Meme] Hard to Be a Better Person?
Sooner or later they'll realise that for each pound I spend they need to spend about 1,000 times more
The LLM Con Artists Are Highly Destructive
Who will ever be held accountable for this scam?
Too Bribed by Microsoft to Move to Free Software?
Microsoft lies and Microsoft bribery (in politics)
New US Editor for The Register is a Microsoft Booster
"Avram Piltch has served as US editor for The Register since July 2025."
Microsoft Hiring European Politicians is Another Form of Bribery; There Should be a European Investigation
When Microsoft bribed people in Europe for OOXML (there's no denying this!) a European government delegate said that Microsoft operated like a cult
Reda Demanded That FSF Removes Its Founder, Now Reda Works Directly for Microsoft
A sellout and a traitor, first working for GAFAM, now Microsoft
PCLinuxOS is Raising Money to Support Development After Fire Incident at the Host
PCLinuxOS has not had announcements lately
Speed of the Site Should be Better Now
The "bot attacks" impact the speed of the sister site too
Getting More From AnalogNowhere
Recently we used many images from AnalogNowhere
Microsoft, Microsofters and 'Secure' Boot Shills Already Storming the LWN Report About Expiring Certificate, Shooting the Messenger
LWN has clearly stuck a nerve
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, July 23, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, July 23, 2025
Disable "Secure" Boot Today (the Only Better Time to Do So Was Yesterday)
Don't trust anything Red Hat tells you about security
Links 23/07/2025: Windows Killed Company After 150+ Years, US Government Mimics Russia's Attacks on the Media
Links for the day
Freedom Generally Wins at the End, History Shows (But It's Constantly Attacked, Too)
At the moment people realise "Linux" (e.g. Android) isn't enough to guarantee any freedoms
Over 3 Months Later Brett Wilson LLP Still Unable to Recruit a Media Lawyer?
"Immediate start", but not found... still unfilled
“Inhumane” and “Disgusting” Mass Layoff Execution, According to Microsoft Staff
The workers are looking for other places to work
The Free Software Foundation (FSF) Has a New Slogan for Its 40th Anniversary
The freedoms are what's most important
Microsoft is Trying to "Pull a Nokia" on GNU/Linux as Desktop/Laptop Platform
We all remember that rather well, don't we?
LLM Slopfarms gbhackers.com, "Cyber Press" and CyberSecurityNews Are Drowning Google News (and Shame on Google for Feeding and Facilitating Them)
All are run by the same people
Links 23/07/2025: Droplets GUI Patent Monopoly Challenge, Nokia Leverages Illegal Patent Court Against Rivals
Links for the day
Gemini Links 23/07/2025: Community in Geminispace and Challenges With Old Computers
Links for the day
Links 23/07/2025: Slop Patents Tackled, Slop Copyright Misuses Tackled by Politicians
Links for the day
Our Three Lawsuits Against Microsofters Are About to Become a Lot More Relevant to GNU/Linux
The Master will easily understand why Garrett has been attacking me since 2012
Links 23/07/2025: Retreating From Transparency on Jeffrey Epstein, We No Longer Have Press Freedom
Links for the day
Gemini Links 23/07/2025: Piano and Food
Links for the day
New and Old
On Ageism in Tech
Slop Is Not Intelligence and It Does Not Enhance Productivity
Like voice dictation, which cannot tell the difference between "sheet" and "shit"
EPO Crimes Are Spreading to the British Court System
Society is now paying the price for failing to tackle crimes at the EPO
It's Time to Dump SharePoint and Here's What to Use Instead
Nextcloud, ownCloud, Bookstack, MediaWiki, and MediaGoblin
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, July 22, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, July 22, 2025
Brett Wilson LLP Has Gone Silent
Sometimes silence says more than nothing at all
Slopwatch: LinuxSecurity, Planet Ubuntu, and LinuxTechLab
some slopfarms show no remorse and they don't value their reputation at all
Links 23/07/2025: Book Bans, Storms, and Kangaroo Court for Patents Commits More Unlawful Acts of Overreach
Links for the day