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The Administrative Council of the EPO had a busy meeting last week, and decided on several changes to the EPC Implementing Regulations, resulting in decisions CA/D 2/09 and CA/D 3/09, due to come into force on 1 April 2010.  As well as the expected changes to Rule 36 regarding divisional applications (noted by the IPKat here), other changes include a new version of Rule 161 that will make responding to an international preliminary examination report prepared by the EPO compulsory, but only if a demand under Article 31 PCT has been made.  The IPKat can't quite figure out whether the new Rule 161 will mean that the option to amend under current Rule 161 will no longer be available for Euro-PCT applications where a demand was not made, but perhaps his readers can help.

CA/D 3/09 also makes changes aimed at clamping down harder on applications lacking unity, by making the applicant limit their application to only one invention in response to a finding of the search examiner.  Additionally, responses to an extended European search report will be mandatory and, when filing amendments, basis from the specification as-filed will need to be indicated.  

As far as the IPKat can figure out, all this will effectively makes compulsory what is currently merely advisory, and will tend to force applicants into making decisions about what to do with their application earlier on in the process, as well as making European patent attorneys work a bit harder.  Whether the EPO will respond in kind by speeding up examination is another matter. 

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