Reminder: Use of the Title European Patent Attorney/EPA is Reserved
The 100th Meeting of the epi Council in Nice on 8 November 2025 approved revised rules governing epi studentship.
The revised rules prohibit use by admitted students of misleading expressions or titles which falsely or inaccurately imply qualification to act before the European Patent Office. In particular, titles such as “Part-Qualified European Patent Attorney” and related derivatives/abbreviations are specified as being unacceptable.
The Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) of epi wishes to emphasise the importance of complying with rules limiting use of the title “European Patent Attorney” exclusively to those who have (a) passed the European Qualifying Examination (EQE); and (b) are on the European List maintained by the EPO. The standing of the qualification “European Patent Attorney” (and abbreviations or derivatives) must not be diminished through use of it to describe those who are not qualified and entitled to provide representation before the EPO.
The PCC moreover wishes to draw attention to decision D 0001/20 of the Disciplinary Board of Appeal of the EPO. This concludes that the term “IP attorney” used in the website of a firm of European Patent Attorneys to describe individuals providing services in the realm of intellectual property, and who had not passed the EQE, was likely to be misleading to the target audience of the website. Misleading information given knowingly by a European Patent Attorney transgresses Article 1(1), second sentence, of the Regulation on Discipline (RDR).
The PCC is available to provide advice to members in cases of uncertainty concerning the RDR and the epi Code of Conduct (CoC). Any requests for advice should be routed via the epi Secretariat. The Committee welcomes all such requests that assist to clarify acceptable practices for members.
