EQE2024: Room, Desk & Creating Evidence

During the Tutor’s Meeting in 2023 (epi information 04/2023), it was stated that “the invigilators and Examination Board have seen some deterioration about respecting the rules, e.g., people wearing headsets and some even refused to take them off. The latter is not acceptable, and the Examination Board had to take them more serious in 2023, also in view as not in pandemic crisis anymore. In EQE 2023, 36 (Pre-Exam: 17; main exam: 19) cases with a breach of rules were detected. All 36 candidates were contacted, giving facts and asking for explanation. Not all replied or convincingly explained their behaviour and some disciplinary action had to be taken, in particular deduction of points, sometimes leading from PASS into COMP FAIL or FAIL. In 2024, the Examination Board will be more strict on the rules for conduct“. We have made the 2023 Tutors Report available directly here.

*** this includes rules about scheduled & unscheduled breaks **

So, all candidates need to read the requirements (don’t just rely on us 😉), especially the latest ItC. Comply with the spirit and letter of all the regulations and instructions, before during and after the exam, even if you think them trivial. If you are worried about compliance with any of these requirements, or you have medical issues that conflict (such as hearing aids), try to solve them yourself as much as possible. If you cannot comply, inform the helpdesk@eqe.org ASAP, and certainly before the exam.

• epi‘s Working Group on Diversity and Inclusion is discussing the topic of ‘reasonable adjustments’ in the EQE very actively, and we would be grateful to hear of any experiences candidates want to share. You can contact any of the members of the D&I group, or use the central email d-and-i@patentepi.org https://patentepi.org/en/diversity-and-inclusion/members-of-di-wg.html

ItC V.7, 8 – You cannot leave room, close FLOWlock browser or move out of camera view within first 60 mins of each part of a Main Exam, even if you have handed in your answer

ItC V.9 – During each exam, you may only leave the room for scheduled breaks (prescheduled breaks between official exam parts, such as for lunch). Exceptionally, in those exam parts that allow you to do so, you may take unscheduled breaks. Unscheduled breaks are only possible during paper A, paper B, the two parts of paper C and part D2 of paper D, and only after 60 minutes have passed from the official exam start time.

ItC V.9(b) – Unscheduled breaks are only allowed in A, B, C and D2 after 60 mins. You must inform the invigilator via the chat widget when you take an unscheduled break and when you return to your desk. You do not have to wait for authorisation before leaving. Unscheduled breaks are expected to take no more than 3 mins.

• So for PE (70 mins), D1-1 (95 mins) and D1-2 (105 mins), there are NO unscheduled breaks allowed. Even if you hand-in early, you must stay in front of the camera at least 60 minutes before leaving (ItC 8).
• 2024-02-20 EQE helpdesk answer: you are right, no unscheduled breaks are allowed during paper PE (all 4 parts, each with duration 70 minutes), paper D1.1 (duration 95 minutes) and D1.2. (duration 105 minutes). 
• If you do take a break during these parts the invigilator will take a note of it, inform you that it is not allowed and potential disciplinary measures may ensue. 
• Candidates who can prove that they have a medical problem that requires them to go to the bathroom more frequently and who cannot go without toilet breaks for longer periods can exceptionally be granted to take unscheduled toilet breaks also during periods where it is normally not allowed.

Consider using adult diapers (not a joke – I used them as a benchmarker last year). Even during the in-person exams, a lot of candidates used to use them to maximise their time working on the exam as the bathrooms were not always close-by and sometimes you had to wait in line.

Make sure you fully understand the restrictions around starting times and breaks. We have made schedules with timings for each exam, and a DO NOT DISTURB sign for EQE 2024 to help with the requirements around the start of the exam. 

Before each exam, before you put your phone away, I strongly advise making a video with time and GPS stamp of your room, desk and computer to create your own evidence.

Join the EQE Telegram groups to discuss issues with other candidates: Main group, Study group, ABC&PE-claims, D&PE-legal and Marketplace. The groups are public, and open to any tutors or candidates. A few rules: treat others with respect, no discussion of cheating, no exchange of large sections of copyrighted materials (use of excerpts for study and discussion allowed). During scheduled exams, no discussion of the exam questions or answers. During mocks, no restrictions on the discussions.

More comments and tips are here.

Calendars for EPAC 2023 & EQE 2024

Up-to-date exam calendars can be downloaded here. Please pass on quickly to any EPAC candidates – the exam will be held on 12 Oct 2023. We have also included a summary about the changes to the EPO’s 10-day notification rules because this is likely to be tested.

Calendars are no longer provided during the exam. Although the OJEPO’s are available online, there is no digital calendar to figure out weekends, and you cannot use one on your computer (or phone) during the exam. So, you need them on paper.

• For EPAC 2023, there is no clear info, but we expect that the weekends and closing days for EPO offices in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 will be sufficient.
• For EQE 2024, you need to know the weekends and closing days for EPO offices in 2022, 2023 and 2024. The EQE Supervisory Board decided on 26 Jun 23 that the default Rules 126, 127 and 131 EPC to be applied are those in force on 1 Nov 23 (no 10-day rule). If candidates choose to apply Rules 126, 127 and 131 EPC as in force on 31 Oct 23 (10-day rule), this must be clearly indicated in their answers.

Indexed: PCT App. Guides / EPC Guidelines / UP Guide

The latest version of our Indexed WIPO-PCT Applicant's Guides (Jul 23) is now available. Together with our EPO-EPC Guidelines (Mar 23) and Unitary Patent Guide (Apr 22 = still in force), these books are useful as desktop references for daily use and for EQE study.

Our Indexed version improves on the official digital versions by abbreviating index entries, grouping them at the front to allow quick scanning, using page numbers to speed up finding pages, indicating sections with significant changes in the last 3 years, and fully using the page size to give a better overview of paragraphs. Relevant legal citations & references are underlined, making them easier to spot. We have retained the original order and numbering of the sections so they can also be used with any EPC / PCT legal reference, such as EPC.App and PCT.App.

Three editions of each are available in English:

• Study A4 Edition - using thicker 80gr paper, which is more suitable for intensive tabbing, annotating and highlighting available from Pumbo via www.boekenbestellen.nl.
• Portable A4 Edition - using thinner 50gr "bible paper", which is thinner and lighter available from available from Pumbo via www.boekenbestellen.nl. Note that Printing-On-Demand on such thin paper can sometimes result in minor print quality issues.
• Study Letter Edition - using thicker 90gr paper, which is more suitable for intensive tabbing, annotating and highlighting available internationally from Amazon mainly for orders outside the EU (AU, CA, JP, UK, US). If you are within Europe, please support our highly-recommended printer Pumbo instead of using Amazon👍.

For more details, including the order links, and sample pages, see: fireballpatents.com/study-materials.

The EPO-EPC Guidelines (EPC-GL) detail the procedures to be followed before the EPO. It covers their standard approach when dealing with direct EP and Euro-PCT applications, based on standard interpretations of the law and established case law. This book DOES NOT contain the EPO Euro-PCT Guide (EPG) or the EPO-PCT Guidelines.
This book also contains the EPO's Unitary Patent Guide (UPG), which outlines how to obtain an EU Unitary Patent. Note that the Unitary Patent is part of the legal syllabus for EQE2024:

"The syllabus of the EQE includes all updates and publications as defined in Rule 22 IPREE as at the syllabus cut-off date (31 October of the year preceding the examination). This includes inter alia, OJ EPO 2022, A41, which sets out the "Implementing Regulations on Unitary Patent Protection" before the EPO"

The WIPO-PCT Applicant's Guides (AG-IP and AG-NP) detail the main requirements and actions to be followed before the International Authorities and Designated / Elected Offices by applicant's.
This book also contains the WIPO Administrative Instructions (AI), detailing how Authorities should apply the PCT Rules, and including an overview of the applicant & office forms, the Request and the Demand Forms.
This book also contains Misc. PCT Info which are the useful overviews and FAQ's found on the WIPO website, such as which offices accept restoration of priority, fee tables, fee discounts, national security provisions and national entry time limits. This book DOES NOT contain the RO Guidelines (RO GL or GL/RO) or ISA/IPEA Guidelines (ISPE GL or GL/ISPE).

For EQE candidates, the EPO-EPC Guidelines and WIPO-PCT Applicant's Guides are considered essential for Pre-Exam and Paper D because most of the legal questions can be answered using the contents. Guidelines & Applicant's Guides are not legal basis themselves, but on Paper D, answers should always be supported by Articles and Rules citations. These versions are the official versions for EQE 2024 Main Exam & Pre-Exam. Note that many legal texts will be available digitally during the exam through WISEflow, including the contents of the EPO website and most parts of the PCT Applicants Guides. If you will rely on these electronic versions, make sure during the mocks that you actually have access because some networks and systems may block these connections.

EQE candidates: influence online exams in 2024

EQE candidates: influence the online exams in 2024 by giving direct feedback to the epi about your problems with Paper C in 2021, 2022 or 2023. We need as many responses as possible – please fill it in, even if you passed, and forward to all the candidates that you know: epi Paper C – Feedback Form

“As you know, the format of Paper C has changed since 2021 due to the EQE being held online. We would like to receive your opinion about the actual format of the paper and the division of the tasks between the two parts.

Many candidates have raised objections to the time division of Paper C into two parts; in particular, having the parts of equal duration is not fair in view of the large amount of information which needs to be processed in the first part.

In addition, objections have been raised that candidates needed specialised technical knowledge and accompanying vocabulary to be able to attempt Paper C which has negatively affected the performances of some candidates due to their not having knowledge in the technical field of the paper.

We would therefore like to have your opinion on Paper C in its current format. Please respond to the following survey to assist us in our analysis of the situation.”

Many thanks in advance.
Best regards / Mit freundlichen Grüßen / Sincères salutations
Education Team
epi – European Patent Institute 

EQE Equality = Missione Impossibile?

 

“Your mission, Etna, if you accept it, is to pass parts ABC of the European Qualifying Exam within two attempts. Your dreams of success will collide with mind-bending riddles, highly specialized technology and deadly traps, raising the bar beyond reason, year after year. In an entirely foreign language, you must gather the scattered pieces of a <Possible Solution>, which hold the key to your future career. The time given is a fraction of what you would have in real-life. This WISEflow message will crash your computer in five seconds.”

blog.ipappify.de/eqe-equality-missione-impossibile/

EQE: 17 Mar 2023 - Pre-Exam - no copy (sorry), but my comments

ItC => no ticket for you!

Friday was the e-EQE Pre-Exam (Part 1: 0930-1040 CET - 70 mins, part 2: 1100-1210 CET - 70 mins, part 3: 1330-1440 CET - 70 mins and part 4: 15000 - 1610 CET - 70 mins). Unfortunately, I was not able to get a copy of the questions, so I cannot share them. The EPO normally makes good copies available in the compendium in the week after the EQE.

• I am keeping my fingers crossed for all 2023 candidates 🤞🤞🤞. 
• If you had any issues with any exam that affected you efficiency, or it was not inline with your expectations, please file a complaint.  Formally, complaints must be formally filed no later than midnight on the day of the exam you are complaining about. Even if you have miss the formal deadline, submit all complaints that could affect your marking or performance as quickly as possible to helpdesk@eqe.org. 
• You can also give a reason why you were not able to submit immediately after the exam, such as tiredness or needing to prepare for the next exam. Also realise that by filing a complaint, you keep your options open regarding an appeal. The first thing that is checked by the Disciplinary Board is whether you complained promptly after the exam. You are also creating a record while it is fresh in your mind. Even if it is something that you might feel is your fault, remember that the conditions under which you are taking the exam have been 100% determined by the EQE organisation and that you have no choice but to do it that way. Any issue that you may have is directly caused by these conditions.

• Some tips for the e-mails from case law:
• turn on the automatic read receipt confirmation
• ask them to confirm receipt
• ask them also to confirm that the email has been forwarded to the Examination Board
• explain why you were not able to submit the complaint on the same day of the exam
• keep bugging them until you get the confirmations.

• My suggestions to candidates after the eEQE
• Celebrate - you survived the third eEQE 🥇
• Put your TAB and WINKEY caps back 😀
• Manually uninstall Lockdown Browser: in Windows, it is found in the start menu under Respondus
• Be suspicious of any emails mentioning WISEflow or Lockdown Browser or Respondus. if you get any emails about "updates" of the Lockdown Browser, do not click on them. Only update through WISEflow.
• Preferably unplug all the extra cameras and microphones. Or at least cover the cameras when not in use.
• Take a couple of days off and celebrate 😉
• Don't read blog posts about model answers. They are usually made by EQE nerds who made the exams under relaxed conditions. They could still be wrong. Even if it is a perfect answer, no-one knows where all the marks will be awarded. 
• The marking sheets are only finalised after the exam following discussions within the committees about what to accept and what not. For example, if there was an issue almost no-one dealt with, they usually compensate by awarding marks for something else that most people got. The exams usually have built-in fail-safes, so if you miss something, you will not lose marks everywhere. 

• I heard some very disturbing news that candidates were not allowed late entry to the flows under any conditions. It was suggested that the Instructions To Candidates (ItC) have been amended on that point. In the version of Dec 2022 on the EPO website (why has these Instructions not been published in the OJEPO before the exam?):
• I. General  
• 2. Candidates must enter the online examination environment as stipulated in point IV below at the official start time
• 4. Candidates who enter the online examination environment after the official start time of a particular examination paper or paper part may not make up the lost time at the end. 
• 5. Candidates will not be allowed to enter the online examination environment more than 15 minutes after the official start of each examination part (flow).
• IV. Preparation and start of the examination
• 8. After completing the above steps, candidates must immediately launch the lockdown browser. The lockdown browser launch procedure should be run at the start of the examination but must be completed no later than 15 minutes after the examination start time. Otherwise, candidates will not be able to enter the flow and sit the respective paper or part thereof.
• Note that in the last version that was actually published in the OJEPO before EQE 2023 (OJ 2022, A20), these sections read:
• I. General
• 4. Candidates who fail to log on to the FLOWlock browser by the official start time of a particular examination paper or part of a paper may not make up the lost time at the end unless, in exceptional cases, the invigilators decide otherwise.
• IV. Preparation and start of the examination
• 8. After completing the above steps, candidates must immediately launch the FLOWlock browser. The FLOWlock browser launch procedure must be completed no later than 15 minutes after the examination start time. Otherwise, candidates will not be able to sit the EQE.
• It is not clear to me from either version that this is a hard deadline which cannot be overruled in certain circumstances. Candidates can only take this exam 1x per year - if they are casually denied entry, their careers can be jeopardised and they can be severely demoralized.
• In at least one case, the candidate contacted the invigilators who stated that late entry was not allowed because they had printed out the materials and could have passed them on to someone else. So, the candidate was prima facie accused of cheating without any evidence or chance to defend themselves, and not allowed into the flow at all. 
• It reminds me of the infamous Munich ticket machines pictured above that randomly don't accept credit cards, bank notes over 20 Euros, coins etc, and guide you through endless menus only to reset if you take too long to choose. No ticket for you!
• This absolute exclusion cannot be true - the normal procedure should be that the candidate is allowed to do the the exam and the "suspicious" situation is reported to the Examination Board. 
• It is clear in ItC IV. Misconduct (OJ 2022, A20) only the Examination Board is allowed to take a decision regarding cheating, not the Secretariat:
• 3. Suspicious events during the examination pointing to potential cheating, e.g. suspicious looks in a particular direction, that are detected during the retrospective review of the video and audio recordings can be punished by the Examination Board under Rules 19 and 20 IPREE. The Examination Board may do so even after the examinations have been marked and the results published. 
• 4. Other breaches of the instructions may also lead to consequences for candidates and may attract further consequences under Rules 19 and 20 IPREE.

EQE: 16 Mar 2023 - C Exam - no copy (sorry) and my comments

Thursday was the e-EQE C Exam (C-1: 0930-1230 CET - 180 mins and C-2: 1315-1615 CET - 180 mins). Sorry, I do not have a copy available (I was not a benchmarker), but please post any comments you have. The EPO normally makes official copies of the exams available in the compendium in the week after the EQE.

• I heard from many people that the subject matter was very mechanical.
• There were also a lot of complaints about the amount that you needed to read in C-1 before you could answer. Most people seemed to have needed 2 hours before they could start answering.
• In the afternoon, the experiences seem to have been reversed, with plenty of time available. But, according to the exam rules, it is not allowed to answer any of the morning questions in the afternoon.
• A common feeling is that the exam timing should have been C-1: 4 hrs and C-2 hrs.
• Having to read so much in C-1 is a severe disadvantage to non-native speakers.
• I also don't understand why the C exam is not split evenly into 2 parts, either as 2 mini cases or two sets of associated claims with different prior art. The committee has had 2 years to do this - the WISEflow restrictions are still the same as in 2021. There is no excuse for this. Again, there will be many "fit-to-practice" candidates having to retake the C-exam in 2024.
• I have heard a rumor that candidates who seem to improve their understanding of the case during the afternoon are suspected of cheating by discussing part 1 with someone else. There is also an innocent explanation - candidates are so overwhelmed in C-1 that they start reading as soon as they have printed out C-2. Or some of them reread C-1 in the lunch break. This is not forbidden by the rules - it is just a risk because they do not know how relevant the C-1 information will be in C-2. But for 2021, 2022, and 2023 it has been very relevant. There is a very simple way to fix this - split the exam properly!
• And again, it seems that all the discussions about changing the exam syllabus are also completely pointless because the committees will just make the exams that they want to. I have now changed my opinion to be in favour of the multiple-choice only option originally proposed by the EPO.
• It is unacceptable that good, well-prepared candidates are now spending several years trying to pass these 4 exams due to the unpredictable technical problems and due to the unexpected exam contents. 
• And non-native speakers continue to be punished. They do not expect any favours, but they should be treated fairly and they should able to adequately prepare based on previous exams.

EQE: 14 Mar 2023 - B Exam - no copy (sorry) and my comments

Tuesday was the e-EQE B Exam (0930-1300 CET - 210 mins). Sorry, I do not have a copy available (I was not a benchmarker), but please post any comments you have. The EPO normally makes official copies of the exams available in the compendium in the week after the EQE.

I heard from many people that it was a lot of subject-matter to get through, similar to the old exams where you had to figure out the amendments yourself. If you need too much time to decide on your amendments on B, it becomes very difficult to pass because most of the marks are for argumentation (support, novelty, inventive step).

• The problems in B are made worse by the difficulties in WISEflow of comparing on-screen claims as filed with the description as filed, and comparing on--screen amendments with the claims/application as filed.
• And the problems in current B exams are made even worse by the very high time pressure. When the PE was introduced, the B-exam was reduced in 2013 by 30 minutes by providing a claim set from the client. This can only save time if it is almost exactly the direction to go in. The standard advice from tutors used to be (in 2013 - 2019) was not to think too much and just follow this direction, clearing up clarity and extension issues, and writing out the argumentation.
• Since 2021, the B committee has gone back (unannounced) to the old-style (< 2013) of B-exam, requiring a more thorough interpretation often deviating from the clients proposal, but without giving the 30 minutes back. So, more technical understanding is needed to figure out the amendments, but you have no time to think, and definitely no time to correct your answer. You have one-shot to pass.

The basic principle of A and B as negative mark exams is a fundamentally flawed principle, which can lead to an enhanced loss of marks. The Disciplinary Board has also commented on this. You start with 100 marks, and lose marks for every mistake. That means that they have to anticipate all expected mistakes during exam drafting, and either added additional comments in the exam to point you away from them, or provide a route to keep getting marks after making mistakes. Unfortunately, with the combined technology exams, it is even more difficult to predict what 1000 candidates will do. What you are often missing with an unexpected solution are similar features in the prior art for the novelty & inventive step defence, and you are often missing a clear technical effect associated with your distinguishing features.

• Because of the time pressure, there is no time to rewrite your answer or to change your mind. The only guidance you have is that if you find the supporting words / phrases for amendments, and you have a technical effect, then you are probably on the right path. 

EQE: 9 Mar 2023 - A Exam - no copy (sorry) and my comments

Updated 14 Mar 2023

Thursday was the e-EQE A Exam (0930-1330 CET - 240 mins). Sorry, I do not have a copy available (I was not a benchmarker), but please post any comments you have. The EPO normally makes official copies of the exams available in the compendium in the week after the EQE. 

• I heard from many people that it was very electromechanical, similar to the old exams when there were separate EM and CH exams.
• There is a clear trend emerging of alternating exams with either very CH cases and solutions or very EM cases and solutions. This pattern seems to be in both A and B, but offset to each other. It does not seem as if they are able to make the combined technologies approach work properly.
• De facto, we seem to have moved from a system pre 2017 where EM/CH specialties were tested each year to the current system where EM/CH specialities are only tested every 2 years.  It would be interesting to see how many candidates are now only passing A and B after 2 years. Unfortunately, the publicly available detailed statistics per candidate (anonomised) have been suppressed during the last few years, so it is not possible for any third party to evaluate this.
• Maybe they could announce in advance whether it will be an EM or CH flavour - that could save candidates from a lot of frustration.
• They either need to provide an exam that all competences really can pass or provide better guidance about how to prepare. I still believe that it is a better to have more generic AB exams, but we maybe have to admit that the current EQE system just cannot deliver it.
• It also means that it is pointless discussing theoretical changes to the exam syllabus if they will just produce basically the same exams in different pieces with different names.

The basic principle of A and B as negative mark exams is a fundamentally flawed principle, which can lead to an enhanced loss of marks. The Disciplinary Board has also commented on this. You start with 100 marks, and lose marks for every mistake. That means that they have to anticipate all expected mistakes during exam drafting, and either added additional comments in the exam to point you away from them, or provide a route to keep getting marks after making mistakes. Unfortunately, with the combined technology exams, it is even more difficult to predict what 1000 candidates will do. What you are often missing with an unexpected solution are similar features in the prior art for the novelty & inventive step defence, and you are often missing a clear technical effect associated with your distinguishing features.

• Because of the time pressure, there is no time to rewrite your answer or to change your mind. The only guidance you have is that if you find the supporting words / phrases for claims features, and you have a technical effect for your distinguishing features, then you are probably on the right path. 

EQE: 7 Mar 2023 - D Exam - copy to try yourself and my comments

See here: blog.ipappify.de/eqe-7-mar-2023-d-exam-copy-to-try-yourself/