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Before state visit of Federal Chancellor

DPMA welcomes Japanese industry representatives

Prior to the state visit of Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Japan, the German Patent and Trade Mark Office (DPMA) welcomed a delegation of representatives of Japanese industry and the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) in Munich. The delegation, which included representatives of Japanese enterprises operating worldwide, informed themselves, among other things, about current developments at the DPMA. In addition, both sides exchanged views on the European Unitary Patent, which is about to be introduced.

By way of introduction, experts of the DPMA informed about current developments in the processing of patent procedures - for example, about the measures to reduce the number of pending procedures and the associated continuous shortening of procedure times. Furthermore, the focus was on the new tasks of the DPMA under the Second Patent Modernisation Act and the tasks of the Arbitration Board under the Employee Inventions Act.

According to the new legal provisions, the office has a comprehensive mandate to provide information on intellectual property to the general public and, in particular, to small and medium-sized enterprises. In addition, it is now Germany's main actor in international cooperation on intellectual property. The task of the Arbitration Board is to amicably settle disputes between an employee who has made an invention within the scope of his employment and his employer. There is no comparable institution in the Japanese system.

Finally, the participants discussed the forthcoming introduction of the European Unitary Patent. The experts of the DPMA particularly emphasised the associated importance of the German national patent.

This weekend, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz will visit Japan. The German delegation includes six cabinet members.

Picture: DPMA

Last updated: 17 March 2023