Protocol on the statute of the common appeal court relating to Community patents
Date: 1989-12-15
Institutions: Council of the European Union, Representatives of the Governments of the Member States
Subjects: European patent, Protocol (EU), administrative structures, appeal to the Court (EU), higher court













EUR-Lex - 41989A0695(05) - EN






Avis juridique important




|



41989A0695(05)

Protocol on the statute of the common appeal court relating to Community patents  


Official Journal L 401 , 30/12/1989 P. 0048 - 0050 





PROTOCOL ON THE STATUTE OF  THE COMMON APPEAL COURTArticle 1The Common Appeal Court, hereinafter referred to  as 'the Court', established by Article 2 of the Protocol on the Settlement of Litigation concerning  the Infringement and Validity of Community Patents, hereinafter referred to as 'the Protocol on  Litigation', shall be constituted and shall function in accordance with the provisions of the  Protocol on Litigation and of this Protocol. PART IJudgesArticle 2Before taking up his duties each judge shall, in open court, take an oath  to perform his duties impartially and conscientiously and to preserve the secrecy of the  deliberations of the Court. Article 3The judges may not hold any political or administrative office. They may not engage in any occupation, whether gainful or not, unless exemption is exceptionally  granted by the Administrative Committee. When taking up their duties, they shall give a solemn undertaking that, both during and after their  term of office, they will respect the obligations arising therefrom, in particular the duty to  behave with integrity and discretion as regards the acceptance, after they have ceased to hold  office, of certain appointments or benefits. Any doubt on this point shall be settled by the Court of Justice of the European Communities. Article 4Apart from normal replacement, or death, the duties of a judge shall end when he  resigns. Where a judge resigns, his letter of resignation shall be addressed to the President of the Court  for transmission to the Chairman of the Administrative Committee. Upon this notification a vacancy  shall arise on the bench. Save where Article 5 applies, a judge shall continue to hold office until his successor takes up  his duties. Article 5A judge may be deprived of his office or of his right to a pension or other benefits in  its stead only if, in the opinion of a three-quarters majority of the judges of the Court of  Justice of the European Communities, he no longer fulfils the requisite conditions or meets the  obligations arising from his office. The initiative in respect of proceedings to that end shall lie as stipulated in the Rules of  Procedure. The President of the Court of Justice of the European Communities shall notify the decision of the  Court to the Chairman of the Administrative Committee. In the case of a decision depriving a judge of his office, a vacancy shall arise on the bench upon  this notification. Article 6A judge who is to replace a member of the Court whose term of office has not expired  shall be appointed for the remainder of his predecessor's term. PART IIOrganizationArticle 7Officials and other servants shall be attached to the Court to  enable it to function. They shall be responsible to the President of the Court. Article 8The judges shall be required to reside at the place where the Court has its seat. Article 9The Court shall remain permanently in session. The duration of the judicial vacations  shall be determined by the Court with due regard to the needs of its business. Article 10Decisions of the full Court as well as its chambers shall be valid only when an uneven  number of its members is sitting in the deliberations. Decisions of the full Court shall be valid if the lowest uneven number of members exceeding half of  the number of members of the Court is sitting. Decisions of the chambers shall be valid if three members are sitting; in the event of one of the  judges of a chamber being prevented from attending, a judge of another chamber may be called upon  to sit in accordance with the conditions laid down in the Rules of Procedure. Article 11N° judge may take part in the disposal of any case in which he has previously taken  part as adviser or has acted for one of the parties, or in which he has been called upon to  pronounce as a member of a court or tribunal, of a commission of inquiry or in any other capacity. If, for some special reason, any judge considers that he should not take part in the judgment or  examination of a particular case, he shall so inform the President. If, for some special reason,  the President considers that any judge should not sit in a particular case, he shall notify him  accordingly. A judge may be objected to by any party for one of the reasons mentioned in the first paragraph or  if suspected of partiality. A party may not apply for a change in the composition of the Court or of one of its chambers on the  grounds of either the nationality of a judge or the absence from the Court or from the chamber of a  judge of the nationality of that party. Any difficulty arising as to the application of this Article shall be settled by decision of the  Court. Article 12The parties must be represented before the Court by a lawyer entitled to practise  before a court of a Contracting State. The lawyer may be assisted by a technical adviser who is a professional representative whose name  appears on the list maintained by the European Patent Office and who is entitled to act before the  special departments of that Office pursuant to Article 62 of the Community Patent Convention, or by  a technical adviser who is an authorized patent representative in a Contracting State. The  technical adviser shall be allowed to speak at hearings under conditions laid down in the Rules of  Procedure. Such lawyers and technical advisers shall, when they appear before the Court, enjoy the rights and  immunities necessary to the independent exercise of their duties, under conditions laid down in the  Rules of Procedure. As regards such lawyers and technical advisers who appear before it, the Court shall have the  powers normally accorded to courts of law, under conditions laid down in the Rules of Procedure. Article 13The procedure before the Court shall consist of two parts: written and oral. The wirtten procedure shall consist of the communication to the persons involved in the proceedings  of applications, statements of case, defences and observations and of replies, as well as of all  papers and documents in support or of certified copies of them. Communications shall be made by the Registry in the order and within the time laid down in the  Rules of Procedure. The oral procedure shall consist of the reading of the report presented by a judge as Rapporteur,  the hearing by the Court of lawyers and technical advisers, as well as the hearing, if any, of  witnesses and experts. Article 14The Court may require the parties to produce all documents and to supply all  information which the Court considers desirable. Formal note shall be taken of any refusal. Article 15New evidence may be produced before the Court under conditions laid down in the Rules  of Procedure. Article 16The Court may at any time entrust any individual, body, authority, committee or other  organization it chooses with the task of giving an expert opinion. Article 17Witnesses may be heard under conditions laid down in the Rules of Procedure. Article 18With respect to defaulting witnesses and experts the Court shall have the powers  generally granted to courts and tribunals and may impose pecuniary penalties under conditions laid  down in the Rules of Procedure. Article 19Witnesses and experts may be heard on oath taken in the form laid down in the Rules of  Procedure or in the manner laid down by the law of the country of the witness or expert. Article 20The Court may order that a witness or expert be heard by the judicial authority of his  place of permanent residence. The order shall be sent for implementation to the competent judicial authority under conditions  laid down in the Rules of Procedure. The documents drawn up in compliance with the letters rogatory  shall be returned to the Court under the same conditions. The Court shall defray the expenses, without prejudice to the right to charge them, where  appropriate, to the parties. Article 21A Contracting State shall treat any violation of an oath by a witness or expert in the  same manner as if the offence had been committed before one of its courts with jurisdiction in  civil proceedings. At the instance of the Court, the Contracting State concerned shall prosecute  the offender before its competent court. Article 22A hearing in court shall be public, unless the Court, of its own motion or on  application by the parties, decides otherwise for serious reasons. Article 23During a hearing the Court may examine the experts, the witnesses and the parties  themselves. The latter, however, may address the Court only through their representatives. Article 24Minutes shall be made of each hearing and signed by the President and a member of the  Registry. Article 25The cause list shall be established by the President. Article 26The deliberations of the Court shall be and shall remain secret. Article 27Judgments of the Court shall state the reasons on which they are based. They shall  contain the names of the judges who took part in the deliberations. Article 28Judgments of the Court shall be signed by the President and a member of the Registry.  They shall be delivered in open court. Article 29Where the Court is satisfied that any person has established an interest in the result  of any case submitted to the Court, the Court may allow that person to intervene in the case. Submissions made in an application to intervene shall be limited to supporting the submissions of  one of the parties. Article 30Periods of grace based on considerations of distance shall be determined by the Rules  of Procedure. N° right shall be prejudiced in consequence of the expiry of a time limit if the party concerned  proves the existence of unforeseeable circumstances or of force majeure. Article 31If the meaning or scope of a judgment rendered by the Court pursuant to Article 28 of  the Protocol on Litigation is in doubt, the Court shall construe it on application by any party  establishing an interest therein. Article 32The law of the Contracting State in which the Community patent court of second instance  referring the case to the Court has its seat shall be applicable to the revision of a judgment  rendered by the Court pursuant to Article 25 of the Protocol on Litigation. Article 23 of the  Protocol on Litigation shall also be applicable to revision proceedings. Article 62 (1) of the Community Patent Convention in conjunction with Article 125 of the European  Patent Convention shall be applicable to the revision of a judgment rendered by the Court pursuant  to Article 28 of the Protocol on Litigation. Article 33Unless otherwise provided in the Agreement relating to Community Patents or in national  law, the Court and the courts or authorities of the Contracting States shall on request give  assistance to each other by communicating information or opening files for inspection. Article 34The Rules of Procedure of the Court provided for in Article 12 of the Protocol on  Litigation shall contain, apart from the provisions contemplated by this Protocol, any other  provisions necessary for applying and, where required, supplementing it.