After much speculation, the EQE Supervisory Board has decided to officially cancel EQE 2020. It was not unexpected – “for the first time in xxxx years, yyyy has been cancelled” has become a frequent headline this year.
The decision is available here as well as a communication providing more details.
Some comments:
- “composed of an equal number of representatives of the EPO and the epi” – stresses that it is a joint EPO/epi exam. That saves me having to comment on many blog comments 🙂
- “the nearly 3.000 people that participate and are involved in the organisation of the Exams” – based on last year’s figures, approx. 900 Pre-Exam, 1700 Main Exam candidates, 400 organizers/invigilators.
- “actively discussing solutions … strike the right balance between the legitimate expectations of candidates for the 2020 exams and …. health and safety” – thanks to those involved for considering all the options. It is an extraordinarily complex issue to deal with in difficult times, as they also have to consider the future impact of any decisions.
- “the EPO and the epi need to ensure adequate health and safety conditions” – at the moment, there is no agreement yet on what precaution are adequate, but this should develop in the next months as the lockdowns are eased.
- “the EPO and the epi need to guarantee the same basic conditions for candidates from all EPO member states, i.e. that they can all travel to one of the exam venues” – this seems like a big challenge, but could be eased by having more local exam venues.
- “the EPO and the epi need to … avoid jeopardizing the EQE 2021” – yes, this is a higher priority, and will already require a huge effort.
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- “… anyone who so wishes will be allowed to enroll for the 2021 main examination, provided that the [A. 11 REE] conditions … are fulfilled.” – I had to read this a few times.
- Based on Art. 11(7) REE “Moreover, if such a pre-examination is held, candidates who apply to be enrolled for the examination must have obtained a pass grade in the pre-examination”, it means that it is not necessary to have passed a Pre-Exam to take part in the Main Exam 2021 (confirmed by Cees Mulder in a LinkedIn post and on the DeltaPatents EQE blog).
- It also means that being enrolled for Pre-Exam 2020 is NOT a requirement, so anyone who satisfies the Art. 11 REE requirements can enroll.
- So very good news in these dark times for the Pre-Exam candidates :-). They have one less worry going forward. Big thanks to the Board for doing this! And a big thanks also to the EQE organisation for agreeing to handle more candidates in 2021.
- I have already seen many comments that it is unfair to others, but they still have to pass the Main Exam. The Pre-Exam was added as an extra hurdle to prevent unprepared candidates sitting the Main Exam – the hurdle has just been removed. 70-80% of the candidates would have passed anyway.
- “Candidates … enrolled for 2020 main examination papers … considered … enrolled for those papers in 2021” – so no re-registration or additional booking charges for Main Exam candidates.
- EQE 2021: “main examination only, … answers will be marked either on the basis of the legal texts and document versions in force on 31 Oct 2019, or … on 31 Oct 2020, depending on which … would give … the higher mark.” – a practical solution, so Main Exam candidates are not forced to update everything.
- However, I would advise updating anyway because of your daily work. You do NOT NEED to buy new books – look through the Official Journals and PCT Newsletters of the intervening period and update relevant things yourself. Almost every Guidelines or Applicants Guide has change bars or a way of viewing changes. Think about what they could ask at the exam, summarise the relevant sections, and add them to your reference materials. The marking rule at EQE 2021 is your safety net 🙂
- There have been a lot of comments in different blogs regarding compensation for Main Exam candidates. Many of the complaints are related to the way in which employers link considerable raises to passing the EQE or limit funding for courses. There is certainly a lot of stress around the EQE. It may be a good moment in the coming months for professional organisations (epi and national patent attorney organisations) to investigate if this is a widespread problem.
- There is also a myth that you need to follow courses and have the most up-to-date books to pass. Courses basically just allow you to optimise your time better, and the learning moment is not really on the course, but afterwards when you put it into practice by answering questions and doing past exam papers. If you have already done a course, go through the materials again, and practice. You do need reasonably up-to-date books and questions/answers – at least 95% of the legal material you need for the exam is the same every year.
- “… a project towards the development and preparation on an e-EQE envisaging the maximum possible use of new technologies … full digitilization …” – extremely exciting – exactly the right move at this time to look to the future. This crisis has exposed many weaknesses in the current system. So, we look forward to e-EQE 2022.
- “In 2021, the Exams will be organised according to the current format” – it make sense to use the current pipeline of papers before changing anything. I expect changes to the organization, though. EQE 2021 is planned for 1-4 March 2021, so they will probably move this to avoid flu season (May?). There will be more Main Exam candidates anyway, so extra venues may be necessary. Fewer people per venue and less reliance on travelling can both be achieved by more local/regional exam venues.
- Update: additional info about specific cases at EQE FAQ‘s
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