2023-07-18: 12个月优先权期限错过时，能否在欧专局恢复优先权？

华孙事务所，2023年7月18日

问：12个月优先权期限错过时，能否在欧专局恢复优先权？

答：根据《欧洲专利公约》Art. 87(1) EPC，在或为《保护工业产权巴黎公约》任一成员国或世界贸易组织任一成员国提交首次发明专利申请或实用新型申请的申请人，其本人或其权利继承人在提交首次申请的12个月之内就同样的发明提交欧专申请时应该享有优先权。

错过12个月的优先权期限时，无法通过继续处理程序（"further processing": Art. 121(4) EPC）恢复优先权。但根据《欧洲专利公约》Art. 122 EPC 及《欧洲专利公约实施细则》Rule 136(1) EPC，可以通过恢复权利程序（“re-establishment of rights”）恢复优先权，不过必须在12个月优先权期限截止日期两个月内提起恢复权利请求（Rule 136(1) Sentence 2 EPC），且需要在该两个月期限内弥补错过的动作（Rule 136(2) EPC），即欧专申请的申请日需要在该两个月期限内被确定。同时，恢复权利程序需要满足尽到适当注意（"all due care"）的要求：

“Applicants can have their rights re-established only if they show that they were unable to observe a time limit vis-à-vis the EPO in spite of all due care required by the circumstances having been taken. The obligation to exercise due care must be considered in the light of the situation as it stood before the missed time limit expired. "All due care" means all reasonable care, i.e. the standard of care that the notional reasonably competent patentee, applicant or representative would employ in all the relevant circumstances.

For cases where the cause of non-compliance with a time limit involves some error in the carrying out of the party's intention to comply with the time limit, all due care is considered to have been taken if non-compliance with the time limit results either from exceptional circumstances or from an isolated mistake within a normally satisfactory monitoring system.

A finding of exceptional circumstances justifying the re-establishment of rights is dependent on the individual facts of the case. Examples include inter alia organisational upheavals and sudden serious illnesses. In such cases, the requesters must show not only the existence of those circumstances, but also that they took all due care, e.g. by carefully preparing the reorganisation or by having an effective staff substitution system.

Where an isolated mistake within a normally satisfactory monitoring system is alleged, the relevant party must show that the monitoring system normally works well. Such a system must include an independent, effective cross-check mechanism. However, this requirement does not apply to relatively small entities/patent departments.”（欧专局《审查指南》，E-VIII-3.2）

对于究竟什么情况属于“适当注意”（“due care”），欧专局有大量的案例法解释。欧专局专门总结了“Case Law of the Boards of Appeal”（《欧专局申诉委员会案例法》2022年7月第10版III-E-5），其电子版与“due care”相关的部分请见下面的链接：

https://new.epo.org/en/legal/case-law/2022/clr_iii_e_5.html​

对于PCT申请进入欧洲（欧专局作为指定局/选定局）的情形，如果国际阶段恢复优先权（国际申请日错过优先权日起的12个月期限但在14个月之内），则进入欧专局地区阶段时，欧专局仍然会审查是否尽到所有“适当注意”（ Rule 49ter.2 PCT），且认定标准和上述Art. 122 EPC下恢复权利程序中对“适当注意”标准相同。

中国申请人通过国家知识产权局作为受理局，在国际阶段恢复优先权时，国家知识产权局可以采用“适当注意”（due care）和“非故意”（unintentional）标准。而欧专局作为指定局／选定局时采用“适当注意”标准。（请参考世界知识产权组织关于各知识产权局作为受理局和指定局时恢复优先权请求的说明：http://www.wipo.int/pct/zh/texts/restoration.html#E）

如果在国际阶段受理局采用“适当注意”标准恢复了优先权，则PCT申请进入欧洲阶段时不需要提起新的恢复优先权的请求，因为欧专局原则上承认受理局恢复优先权的决定。只有在当欧专局合理怀疑“适当注意”的条件没有满足时，欧专局才会发函通知申请人，告知申请人欧专局怀疑的原因，并要求申请人在规定期限内就此发表答复意见。（欧专局《审查指南》，F-VI-3.7）

如果在国际阶段受理局采用“非故意”标准恢复了优先权，则申请人需要向作为指定局/选定局的欧专局提起新的恢复优先权的请求（request for restoration of priority right），因为受理局采用“非故意”标准恢复优先权的决定对欧专局并没有约束力（欧专局《审查指南》，F-VI-3.7）。提起恢复优先权请求的期限是进入欧专局地区阶段期限的31个月期限截止日期的一个月内，在有效提起提前处理请求（request for early processing, Art. 23(2) or 40(2) PCT）时为欧专局收到提前处理请求日期的一个月内（R. 49ter.2(b)(i) PCT），同时需要向欧专局说明错过优先权期限的原因（R. 49ter.2(b)(ii) PCT），并缴纳官费，2023年4月1日起为720欧元（R. 49ter.2(b)(iii), R. 49ter.2(d) PCT; Art. 2(1), item 13 RFees）。