EQE 2024 exam schedule now available: Pre-Exam
The "Information on the schedule for the EQE 2024 examination papers" (dated 27 July 2023) is now available on the EQE website.
The EQE 2024 will take place online using the examination software Wiseflow, with substantially the same setup as the e-EQE/Online EQE of 2021, 2022 and 2023.
The pre-examination is again split into four parts of 70 minutes, each part having 5 questions (4 statement per question). Each part must be completed before the start of the next break, with the next set of questions only becoming available after the break. Once the time allowed for a part has elapsed, it will not be possible to go back to that part. The pre-examination lasts four hours and forty minutes.
No documents will be available for printing in the legal parts,
Candidates will be allowed to print the description of the invention as well as the prior-art documents for the claim analysis parts before the start of the appropriate part. The documents allowed for printing will be made available during the break preceding the relevant claim analysis part.
No calendars will be provided (see here).
Further, in view of the amendments to Rule 126(2)/127(2)/131(2) EPC per 1 November 2023 (1 day after the legal cutoff date acc IPREE, i.e., 31 October 2023), refer to: this blog post
(Note that that the document may be subject to minor changes as testing continues. Please check the EQE website for updates. E.g., for EQE 2023, an updated version of the document was published in December.)
Please feel invited to post your comments. You are allowed to post anonymously and do not need an account, but please give your name or a nickname for an easy and inter-human interaction.
Note the FAQ-item in the Unitary Patent on the EQE website:
ReplyDelete"To which extent the syllabus of the EQE covers the Unitary Patent and transitional measures thereto?
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."
OJ 2022, A41 is abbreviates as "UPR" in the Unitary Patent Guide (https://www.epo.org/en/legal/guide-up)
It includes, for example, Requirements of the request for unitary effect (same claims in respect of all participating member states, time limit, language of request, translation of patent) and Payment of renewal fees for European patents with unitary effect.
FAQ: https://www.epo.org/en/service-support/faq/learning/european-qualifying-examination/eqe-online/which-extent-syllabus-eqe
If you sometimes wonder whether an exotic exception would/could/may be the reason for a statement to change from T to F or vv: see our earlier blog post titled “ On the interpretation of Pre-Exam Questions and on Pre-Exam appeals (Blog Post)” (see link in the right column).
ReplyDeleteWhen you are in doubt whether to answer T or F, better to just guess or pick one at random than not answer at all: one (or more) non-answered statement(s) in a question results in 0 marks for the complete question, even if you have all other three statements correct (and would this have at least 3 marks if you also answered the 4th statement).
ReplyDeleteSee “Instructions for answering the pre-examination paper and and marking scheme” on the EQE website (Notice from the Examination Board dd 1 Dec 2023), items 1(c) and 2(a).
hello, thank you for your sharing. I notice that on the website of EPO, the pre examination of 2023 is available on wiseflow. Do you know how to get it on wiseflow ?
ReplyDeleteIt is in the EQE Wiseflow compendium to which all Pre-Exam 2024 candidate have access, together with other former online pre-exams.
DeleteNote that the compendium versions and their answer are not adapted to changes to the law - they are the original exams and the original answers. Up-to-date versions are in our P-book, available in our webshop (updated to reflect the legal texts on 31.10.2023, the relevant date for EQE 2024).