29-11-2016 15:00
Hearing on the Implementation of the Biotech Directive
On 29 November 2016, the Committee on Legal Affairs held a public hearing on intellectual property law and the implementation of the Biotech Directive with the participation of the Committee on Agricultural and Rural Development. The hearing concentrated on the current developments in the area of biotechnology and intellectual property law, with a particular focus on patenting products resulting from essential biological processes.
Different EU Member States, stakeholders and the European Parliament have expressed their concerns regarding this possibility, especially after a recent ruling of the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office on this matter. Against this background, the Commission adopted a notice clarifying certain articles of Directive 98/44 on the protection of biotechnical inventions on 3 November 2016. This hearing thus offered the opportunity to have the main elements of the notice presented by the European Commission and to seek the European Patent Office's initial reactions as well as the JURI and AGRI committees' thoughts on the future of the Biotech Directive.