Steve Rowan appointed EPO Vice-President for Patent Granting Process
IPO Director of Registered Rights (IPO) appointed Vice-President of the EPO.
The IPO welcomes the announcement that Steve Rowan, Director Registered Rights (IPO) has been appointed as Vice-President of the European Patent Office Directorate-General Patent Granting Process.
Tim Moss, IPO Chief Executive said:
Congratulations to Steve on his well deserved appointment. I’m very proud that the UK has been able to field such a strong candidate and the IPO wishes him all the best in his future role.
Steve joined the IPO in 1991 and has held a number of operational and tribunal roles within the IPO. As Director of Registered Rights he is responsible for the patent, trade mark and design application and examination processes and the management of those rights and the Office’s tribunal functions.
He has also worked on a wide range of IP policy issues as Deputy Director of the International and Copyright and IP Enforcement Directorates. He has extensive experience of EU and international negotiations and was Head of the UK Delegation to the Beijing and Marrakesh Diplomatic Conferences. He was seconded to the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit (2004) and HM Treasury (2006), working on the Gowers Review of IP.
The Administrative Council of the EPO comprises delegations from the 38 member states and is responsible for supervising the activities of the European Patent Office, the Organisation’s executive branch. The Council also approves the Office’s budget, and appoints its senior managers, including the President and vice-presidents.
The EPO’s Directorate-General Patent Granting Process is responsible for the entire patent granting process from end to end. This includes search, examination, publication, opposition and all related formalities, and for delivering support for the patent granting process to internal and external users of EPO services.
Steve’s appointment will take effect on 1 January 2019 and is for five years. He will succeed Alberto Casado Cerviño of Spain, who will retire at the end of 2018.
The UK IPO has started the process of recruiting for Steve’s role and further details will follow soon.