Key points
- The PCT application was filed in 2004 and granted in 2010. An opposition was filed in 2011, so the opposition including the appeal took 11 years in this case. The appeal took 7 years.
- The opposition was based on alleged public prior use.
- "The Opposition Division heard witnesses and considered written evidence, and came to the conclusion that the opponent had proved their case. They have given clear reasons why they were persuaded of the public prior use (appealed decision, section 4.3, in particular page 14, third and fourth paragraphs)."
- "On appeal, the proprietor has not shown that the Opposition Division was not entitled to reach the conclusion it did. The Board, therefore, concurs with the Opposition Division's position: the drawings, delivery slips, invoices, torch sample, and witness testimonies provide enough evidence to establish the public prior use of the PB50.1-H torch."
- The Board does however review in depth whether (the evidence of) the public prior use discloses all features of the claim.
EPO
The link to the decision is provided after the jump, as well as (an extract of) the text of the decision.
source http://justpatentlaw.blogspot.com/2023/01/t-192415-review-of-evidence-in-appeal.html
