Sunday Surprises

Here is your IPKat round-up of the latest IP news and events to keep the January blues at bay. 

EPO Quality dashboard: Quarterly update

The European Patent Office updated its Quality dashboard on 16 January 2026, reflecting the final quarter of 2025. The latest figures based on a 24-month rolling average confirmed high quality, with 94.0% of audited searches having no findings related to novelty, inventive step, or added subject-matter. In the fourth quarter, 81.2% of audited grants had no findings whatsoever, showing a slight improvement over previous periods. Findings related to added subject-matter decreased to 4.6%, successfully achieving the target of 5%. 

Sad Kat

EPO and IP Australia to launch PCT pilot programme starting 1 March 2026

A two-year pilot program beginning March 1, 2026, allows Australian applicants to select the EPO as their International Searching Authority (ISA) and International Preliminary Examining Authority (IPEA). Australian applicants can bypass supplementary searches when entering the European regional phase, saving both time and costs.  They will receive a 75% reduction in European regional phase examination fees if they request an international preliminary examination with the EPO. Once granted, a European patent can be validated in 39 member states or transformed into a unitary patent.

EPO publishes the European patent academy's 2026 training catalogue

On 23 January 2026, the EPO released its new training catalogue featuring over 150 activities. The program includes 2,000 hours of content covering the entire life cycle of an invention, from research to market. New modules for 2026 focus on inventive step, sufficiency of disclosure, and mediation to complete the litigation training area. The academy also introduced a redesigned e-learning centre that provides a modern platform with interactive search options and a customisable dashboard. 

Re-imagining (re)production in intellectual property law: New frontiers in the branding and making of botanical kinds

Happy Kat

On 11 February 2026, the School of Law at Queen’s University Belfast will host Dr Susannah Chapman from University College Cork for a lecture starting at 12:00 and ending at 13:30. The session takes place at the Moot Court, MST 02.006, and explores how fruit breeding programs commercialize new varieties through plant variety protection and restrictive contracts. Dr Chapman intends to discuss how these proprietary supply chains tie the production of varieties to the seasonal creation of brand-compliant fruit. The talk will explore the labour required to make an existing variety grow into its varietal image annually, challenging the traditional legal distinction between creative production and mundane cultivation. By examining these emerging arrangements, the lecture reveals how the law is reworking the very concepts of reproduction and generation upon which it depends.

Remaking creativity: The 2026 create spring school

The third edition of the spring school hosted by the centre for regulation of the creative economy is set for 29 April to 2 May 2026. This year the program investigates the topic of remaking creativity, focusing on the interplay between human expression and advancing technology. Scholars from copyright, competition, and tech regulation will gather to offer perspectives to doctoral students, master students, and early career researchers. This edition builds on previous years that addressed platforming and humanising creativity, providing a space for industry representatives and policy makers to discuss the future of cultural industries. Applications are currently open for those interested in joining this interdisciplinary dialogue in Glasgow.

From fakes to forced labour: A joint EUIPO-OECD study

The EUIPO and the OECD has released a study which documents the link between counterfeiting and labour exploitation. This research provides evidence of a statistical correlation between the illicit trade in fakes and the presence of forced labour within supply chains. By highlighting how criminal networks bypass safety and labour standards to maximize profit, the study underscores that anti-counterfeiting efforts are essential for protecting human dignity as well as intellectual property rights.