Article 134 94
Professional representatives

(1) Professional representation of natural or legal persons in proceedings established by this Convention may only be undertaken by professional representatives whose names appear on a list maintained for this purpose by the European Patent Office.

(2) Any natural person who fulfils the following conditions may be entered on the list of professional representatives:

(a) he must be a national of one of the Contracting States;

(b) he must have his place of business or employment within the territory of one of the Contracting States;

(c) he must have passed the European qualifying examination.

(3) Entry shall be effected upon request, accompanied by certificates which must indicate that the conditions laid down in paragraph 2 are fulfilled.

(4) Persons whose names appear on the list of professional representatives shall be entitled to act in all proceedings established by this Convention.

(5) For the purpose of acting as a professional representative, any person whose name appears on the list referred to in paragraph 1 shall be entitled to establish a place of business in any Contracting State in which proceedings established by this Convention may be conducted, having regard to the Protocol on Centralisation annexed to this Convention. The authorities of such State may remove that entitlement in individual cases only in application of legal provisions adopted for the purpose of protecting public security and law and order. Before such action is taken, the President of the European Patent Office shall be consulted.

(6) The President of the European Patent Office may, in special circumstances, grant exemption from the requirement of paragraph 2(a).

(7) 95 Professional representation in proceedings established by this Convention may also be undertaken, in the same way as by a professional representative, by any legal practitioner qualified in one of the Contracting States and having his place of business within such State, to the extent that he is entitled, within the said State, to act as a professional representative in patent matters. Paragraph 5 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

(8) The Administrative Council may adopt provisions governing:

(a) 96 the qualifications and training required of a person for admission to the European qualifying examination and the conduct of such examination;

(b) 97 the establishment or recognition of an institute constituted by the persons entitled to act as professional representatives by virtue of either the European qualifying examination or the provisions of Article 163, paragraph 7;

(c) 98 any disciplinary power to be exercised by that institute or the European Patent Office on such persons.

94See decisions of the Enlarged Board of Appeal G 2/94, G 4/95, G 3/99 (Annex I).

95See Legal advice No. 6/91 rev. (Annex II).

96See Regulation on the European qualifying examination for professional representatives before the European Patent Office as of 24.10.2002 (OJ EPO 1994, 7 ff ; 2000, 320 ff ; 2002, 565 ff), the implementing provisions as of 24.10.2002 (OJ EPO 1998, 364 ff ; 2003, 25 f) and the Instructions concerning the qualifications required for enrolment for the European qualifying examination (OJ EPO 1994, 599).

97See Regulation on the establishment of an Institute of Professional Representatives before the European Patent Office (OJ EPO 1997, 350) and the changes of 07.06.2002 (OJ EPO 2002, 429 ff) and of 17.06.2004 (OJ EPO 2004, 361).

98See Regulation on discipline for professional representatives of 21.10.1977 (OJ EPO 1978, 91 ff), the Additional Rules of Procedure of the three Disciplinary Bodies of 06.06.1980 (OJ EPO 1980, 176 ff) and the Code of Conduct of the Institute of Professional Representatives before the EPO (OJ EPO2003, 523 ff).