Patenting the life sciences at the European Patent Office

The European patent system is very much like those of the United States and other major countries. Patent applications can be filed as a first filing, as a priority application, or as a national phase of a Patent Cooperation Treaty application. The applications are searched, rigorously examined, and ultimately granted, with the time periods varying somewhat depending on the application type. The object of this article is to highlight some of the differences between the U.S. and European systems, particularly as they relate to life sciences.